


You Can't Make An Emotionally-Developed Papyrus Omelette Without Breaking A Few Limit-Eggs

by KachiggaTHUNDER



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Asgore Dreemurr Needs a Hug, Multi, Papyrus (Undertale) Knows More Than He Lets On, Papyrus (Undertale) Needs a Hug, Protective Sans (Undertale), Undyne Needs A Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:55:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 33
Words: 102,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25058830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KachiggaTHUNDER/pseuds/KachiggaTHUNDER
Summary: Papyrus faces everything with a positive attitude, and never gives up once he's been asked to do something.As nice as that is in theory, it can lead to problems in practice. Problems such as strained friendships, personal doubts and damage to one's personal possessions.Still, no problem can make the Great Papyrus give up!...Probably.
Relationships: Alphys & Bratty & Catty (Undertale), Alphys/Undyne (Undertale), Asgore Dreemurr & Papyrus, Bratty/Papyrus (one-sided), Flowey & Papyrus (Undertale), Papyrus & Sans (Undertale), Papyrus & Undyne (Undertale)
Comments: 243
Kudos: 156





	1. Morning Mishaps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A day is only as good as its beginning!
> 
> Hopefully that rule isn't set in stone.

As would be the case with any self-respecting royal guard in training, Papyrus had a consistent morning routine; there was no way that someone who lacked discipline could meet the standards of the Royal Guard, after all!

Each morning, Papyrus awoke at 6:00 AM sharp. As soon as he had left his bed, he would perform his basic stretches – not that a skeleton actually needed to stretch, but it helped him to focus, and would surely look good in the inevitable documentary on his rise through the ranks.

Once he was fully prepared to start the day, he made sure that he was properly presentable; as he was technically still in training, he had yet to receive his Royal Guard uniform. Until then, he wore the next best uniform available: he would wear his battle body, while also ensuring that he had his special clothes on underneath. Although not an official part of his routine, he did take some time each morning to wonder how his Royal Guard uniform would factor in; should he wear all three layers of clothing? If not, which should he discard? He couldn’t discard his battle body, but at the same time, the chances of him being asked on a date would increase to unfathomable numbers if he was a true member of the Royal Guard! However, as a member of the Royal Guard, would he even have time for dating? It was a very complex issue, one that Papyrus resolved to answer as soon as he received his uniform.

Having ensured that he was as dashing as a skeleton like himself should be, Papyrus would leave his room and make his way downstairs. He had long since decided that waking sans was a futile effort – if sans didn’t get what he deemed to be adequate sleep, he would make up for it elsewhere, even during sentry duty! Papyrus had to respect his commitment to his ideals, even if said ideals were less than becoming of the brother of someone as hard-working as the Great Papyrus. As such, “wake sans” no longer had a place in Papyrus’ morning routine – if sans fell asleep on the job because Papyrus had woken him, it would be at least somewhat Papyrus’ fault that a sentry was not performing their duties to the highest possible standard, and he simply could not allow that!

So, Papyrus would head to the kitchen by himself in the mornings to prepare breakfast. It would be unthinkable for a Royal Guard to start their day with an empty stomach! Papyrus always ensured that his meals were nutritionally viable – although, technically, his own needs were not quite as complex as those of other monsters, due to him being a skeleton, he still made sure to prepare a healthy meal. What good would he be as a Royal Guard if he didn’t set a good example for others?

Papyrus’ favourite healthy breakfast was oatmeal with dinosaur eggs – which he, at one point, doubted came from actual dinosaurs. Of course, they WERE bigger than regular eggs, and they looked quite different, too. He supposed that it was possible that the dinosaurs making the eggs were simply hidden away somewhere – if humans could go so long believing that monsters didn’t exist, who was he to say that the same didn’t apply to dinosaurs? Of course, Papyrus didn’t always have these confusing yet wondrous eggs with his meal – if he was to set a good example, he would have to ensure that he kept a varied diet! He always had his oatmeal with a reasonable topping, be it eggs, berries, garlic, nuts... it was a new meal each time!

Once he had had his breakfast, Papyrus would read through the newspaper – which would not take very long unless it was being read by someone who was determined to sit at their sentry post and slack off – and attempt to solve the puzzles therein as a form of mental exercise. Though Papyrus was extremely great, he was not totally perfect; he would have to admit that, in some cases, he would only skim the articles in his haste to see what the day’s puzzles were! Of course, never one to give anything other than his best, he would return to those articles later to give them his full attention.

Once Papyrus had finished the newspaper puzzles (in his head, of course – he couldn’t simply give the answers to sans before he had even had the chance to read them, of course!), Papyrus’ day would officially begin. That could involve anything, really: even in the Underground, Papyrus never found himself lacking options. He could hang out with Undyne when she wasn’t busy with her patrols, he could hang out with Flowey should the flower’s mood allow for it, he could work on his puzzles or, if he truly had no options, he could simply work toward his goal of joining the royal guard, whatever his newest attempt may entail.

Despite the radical change in their lives since moving to the surface, Papyrus’ routine hadn’t actually changed too much: the only major change was that there was no longer a Royal Guard, which would make joining the Royal Guard a rather difficult task. Until he could find a new calling worthy of the Great Papyrus, he would have to replace his yearning for a Royal Guard uniform with yearning for an unspecified-but-befitting-of-someone-who-was-very-close-to-becoming-a-Royal-Guard uniform. Which was not an easy task, given that he had never seen such a uniform before, but he enjoyed taking the time to think about what it might look like.

Yes, even with all of the changes that had occurred since he had left the Underground, Papyrus’ routine remained fairly consistent. After all, he was destined for greatness, and a proper morning routine made being one’s greatest self that much easier!

Given Papyrus’ strict adherence to his morning schedule, it only made sense that disruptions to his schedule were NOT welcome or appreciated. Papyrus, even as a babybones, could always count on one thing – if things were to go awry for him, it was never a simple little problem; there would always be a plethora of perplexing problems for him to parse through. He believed that, should such a series of issues arise, one should try even harder to make the day into a good one: if one salvaged a day that had a rough beginning, the better parts of the day would be appreciated that much more, after all!

Of course, it was one thing to believe, and another to put the theory into action. Papyrus was never one to back down from such a challenge, but even he had to admit that he had limits: some days really were just too much to handle, and he would have to take some time alone to recuperate.

Given how well their move to the surface had gone overall, it only made sense that he was due such a day.

From the very beginning, the day was off to a rough start: normally, he would be ready to get up before his alarm sounded at 6:00 AM, but not only had he missed the first alarm, he had missed the first five. As a result, he didn’t actually wake until the dreadfully late time of 6:05 AM. Chiding himself, he got out of bed and tried to do his stretches quickly to compensate. As such, he didn’t give himself enough time to truly focus, and his mind was still somewhat hazy as he went to prepare his clothing.

He gave himself a quick once-over in the mirror, and noticed a small loose thread on his battle body. Determined to look his best, he gave it a quick tug to get rid of it. Naturally, given the progress of his day so far, he should have expected that, rather than the loose thread coming away so easily, it would instead tear his clothing, with the loose thread not even having the decency to come away. While the tear was rather small and the loose thread could be tucked away to be fixed later, he could not help but feel that he was not looking his best. If he hadn’t made plans for today, he would have taken the time to mend it, but Papyrus knew NEVER to rush work on clothing. He supposed he would just have to leave things as they were for the time being.

Papyrus also supposed that the only part of his day that would go the same way would be the part that he might actually like to see change – that part being sans. As per usual, sans had not stirred from his room, and even if Papyrus would have liked the company, he figured that it would be unfair to wake sans over his own problems, which could be mended eventually. As such, Papyrus decided that not waking sans would be the first part of his day to follow routine, which gave him hope that the previous problems would be the only ones he faced that day.

The feeling didn’t last. Papyrus made his way down the stairs to prepare his breakfast and saw quite possibly the most horrendous sight anyone could see in their own home.

The fridge door was ajar.

Papyrus scrambled over to the fridge, but sure enough, very little was salvageable. The milk had spoiled, which meant that he would not get his morning calcium boost. He considered making his favourite oatmeal with dinosaur eggs, but quickly scrapped the idea upon opening the carton; someone must have taken them out and placed them back in carelessly, as the few left in the carton had cracked.

He considered using fruit instead, but it seemed that a half-open ketchup bottle had tipped over, and had leaked all over their fruit. Papyrus was certainly not in the mood to have ketchup in his oatmeal. He settled for having the oatmeal without any topping or milk – even a great chef like Papyrus simply could not make such a meal exciting. He ate his breakfast as quickly as he could, and went outside to collect the newspaper.

As always, it had been left on his porch. He had decided too quickly to be thankful for something having gone right, and slowly bent down to pick up the paper. Before his hand rested on the paper, he heard a painfully familiar sound, that of one of the VERY few people that Papyrus was not particularly fond of:

“Bark! Bark!”

Before Papyrus could comprehend what had happened, the Annoying Dog had made off with his newspaper. Papyrus considered giving chase, but decided against it; while he was not one to give up in the face of a challenge, he had to admit that he had yet to actually beat one of the challenges set out by that dog. He returned inside, defeated.

Not only had he missed out on an invigorating wake-up, the chance to see himself looking immaculate and a nice, healthy breakfast, he now had to deal with the fact that he didn’t get his daily dose of mental stimulation. Given how poorly the morning had gone, Papyrus was quite tempted to write the day off and hope that tomorrow was better.

BUT!

The Great Papyrus could not be defeated by something as simple as a less than stellar morning! He would simply have to work even harder to ensure that today was a good one! Steeling himself, Papyrus headed outside and decided to begin his day anew.

After all, after a morning like that, things couldn’t possibly get any worse!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, obviously this is only the beginning for poor Papyrus! (Trust me, that 'Papyrus needs a hug' tag will become far more relevant as the story goes on)
> 
> I'll be updating this daily, and will be adding tags as each chapter brings new characters and content!
> 
> This is my first fic here, so hopefully it meets all of your standards! Comments are much appreciated!


	2. Shopping Shenanigans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite a decidedly not perfect beginning to his day, Papyrus soldiers on. He has a very special mission to accomplish, after all!
> 
> As long as nothing else gets in the way, it will be just fine!

While Papyrus’ morning had not exactly been perfect, he knew that today, being the special day that it was, he simply could not allow himself to be deterred. He knew that he needed to stop by the supermarket today regardless, but he felt a smile coming on as he realized how many of his problems could be rectified there!

His beloved car was having engine troubles, and he had been warned by the mechanics to be extremely careful when driving, and only to do so if absolutely necessary. At the time it had been rather upsetting news, but he could now spin it into a positive: even if the walk to the supermarket would take longer, it would allow for him to regain his focus after the morning’s failed stretches.

While he only had a few specific items that he needed to get, he supposed he’d be able to get some grocery shopping done while he was there. The fridge did need to be restocked; at the very least, he could pick up some fruits, some dinosaur eggs and, despite his better judgement, some more ketchup. If he was lucky, he may even be able to salvage breakfast by picking something nice up from the delicatessen while he was there! Nothing there would be a true replacement for his own cooking, of course, but he might get a decently nutritious pick-me-up, at the very least.

And, of course, he could pick up the newspaper for today, even if he might not have the time to give it his full attention. Which was a shame, because he was hoping to read a very special article – the reason that today was so special, in fact:

It had been one full year since the monsters had left the Underground.

Of course, while it was a historical event of the greatest importance, that wasn’t Papyrus’ reason for being excited about today. Ever since Frisk (Who Papyrus quickly learned to refer to properly; not only was referring to someone as “The Human” quite confusing when one was surrounded by many humans, but the presence of other humans led him to the realization that not referring to someone by their name was actually rather rude) had gone to live with Toriel, they had realized that they didn’t actually know when their birthday was. While Frisk had not been too concerned by the realization, Toriel had been distraught: “My child! Your birthday is not an occasion that we can simply ignore! This will not do!”

Toriel did have to concede, however, that even if Frisk was willing to celebrate their birthday, it would be difficult to do so without knowing when it was. Frisk, ever the problem-solver, had asked if they could simply call the day that the monsters were freed their birthday; to Frisk, it was the day that their life had begun anew. That was the day on which their little family had come together, and the day on which Frisk had begun to feel as though they truly had an identity of their own. To them, it seemed like the perfect day to call a birthday. Toriel agreed wholeheartedly, and the date for Frisk’s birthday was set.

As such, today was Frisk’s first birthday with their new family, and Papyrus had been tasked with picking up party supplies. Papyrus, never one to let his friends down, was hit with a powerful second wind; he would make his way to the supermarket, he would get the supplies and he would make this day special. If not for himself, he would at the very least ensure that Frisk’s day was as great as it could be!

And so began Papyrus’ walk to the supermarket. It wasn’t too far of a walk from his house, so as long as there were no unexpected delays, he wouldn’t have to rush. He was confident that he had nothing to worry about; at such an early hour, there was very little that could go wrong! As he rounded the final corner towards the supermarket, however, he bumped into someone, knocking them over.

Chiding himself for his carelessness, he apologized profusely and went to offer his assistance to this poor passerby.

“MY SINCEREST APOLOGIES! ALLOW ME TO- DOGGO?”

Sure enough, the victim of Papyrus’ carelessness was indeed the visually impaired former Royal Guard. Papyrus helped him to his feet, hoping that he hadn’t caused any offense. Thankfully, Doggo didn’t seem too upset, and was surprisingly glad to see Papyrus. Not that it would ever be a surprise that someone would be glad to see Papyrus, of course, but it was rare for anyone to express such feelings so openly.

“Papyrus, that you...? Am I glad to see you! Think you could help an old pal out?”

It was also rare that Papyrus would be referred to as an old pal, or a pal of any kind, really, but Papyrus was never one to turn down a friend in need!

“WHAT SEEMS TO BE TROUBLING YOU...PAL?”

“Well...” Doggo began, “My seeing-eye dog’s been a little under the weather lately. Nothing too serious, but I figured she could do with a break this morning. Decided to take my morning walk alone, thought I knew the place well enough to get around without the help. That, uh... well, guess you can see how that one turned out. Any chance you’d be able to guide me back?”

Ah. That complicated things.

While Doggo’s residence wasn’t ridiculously far, it was still something of a trek to his and the other dogs’ apartment building. Bringing Doggo home would tighten his own schedule considerably. That being said, not only could Papyrus not say no to a friend in need, there was no way that he could leave a friend in such dangerous circumstances! Even if Doggo was to meet someone else that was willing to help, there was no guarantee that they’d know the way as well as Papyrus did...

“VERY WELL, DOGGO, I SHALL BE YOUR EYES FOR THIS MORNING!”

Doggo expressed his thanks, and the two began their walk to Doggo’s apartment. Thankfully, Doggo walked at a rather brisk pace, so their detour wasn’t met with any more delays. Given Papyrus’ erratic movements and boisterous mannerisms, Doggo had no trouble keeping up with him.

“One thing I always liked about you, Papyrus: you always have the time for anyone who needs it.”

“WELL, I DO TRY MY BEST TO BE THE GREATEST PERSON THAT I CAN BE!”

“Not hard to see that you’re doing a good job of it! Say, did Undyne ever actually say anything to you about why you never made the Royal Guard? I mean, you do everything she yelled at us for not doing; you help people, you don’t slack off, I doubt you’d ever have lost your sentry station in a bet...”

“NO... UNDYNE NEVER WAS QUITE CLEAR ON WHY I WAS NEVER ALLOWED TO JOIN PROPERLY. STILL... IT’S QUITE REASSURING TO KNOW THAT YOU FEEL THAT WAY!”

“Figured you’d have known already. All of us in the Guard thought so, anyway! That rabbit girl that runs the shop thought you were a member for a while... that day Undyne gave her a talking to was something else. Remember how you used to do pretty much all of the big guy’s errands in town? Well...”

Doggo recounted the story of how Greater Dog managed to get himself into trouble with both Undyne and the Snowdin shopkeeper in one swoop, though neither had stayed too mad for very long. The two reminisced on their time in Snowdin, and continued to do so for the rest of their journey. Once they had reached the door to Doggo’s apartment, Papyrus bade his friend farewell and dashed towards the supermarket as quickly as he could. Even with the considerable delay, Papyrus found himself in high spirits as he walked through the automatic doors. He collected his basket and prepared a mental checklist of what he would need.

Surprisingly, things had begun to go exceptionally well for him – he was able to replace everything that had been spoiled in the fridge (Except, sadly, for the dinosaur eggs, which human stores did not seem to stock. He would have to make an inquiry when he had the time.) and he had even managed to pick up some decent sandwiches that he could have to make up for his nutritionally lacking breakfast. Given the delay, he supposed that there was no point in picking up a newspaper; he just hoped that the party games would be challenging enough to work in place of his puzzles. Finally, he went to find the necessary party supplies.

He collected everything necessary for a good party – balloons, banners, decorative table cloths, board games, disposable cups, streamers, party hats... any and every possible item he could think of that would be necessary for a good party. While he thought that he might be slightly overdoing it, given the fact that he also had some home-made decorations prepared, he figured that it was better to be over-prepared than under-prepared. Finally, he picked up some candles and made his way to the checkout.

As Papyrus waited in line, he felt rather pleased with himself; not only had he managed to get everything that he had been looking for, but he had managed to do so rather quickly. If he managed to keep things up at this pace, he might manage to get back on schedule!

It wasn’t long before the person in front of him had placed all of their items on the conveyor belt and had placed the divider up. Just before Papyrus could begin to unload his items, he felt a presence pushing by him.

“Ka-SIGH. Out of the way, I have less stuff than you so I should go first.”

Although a little displeased by the monster’s attitude, Papyrus supposed that the other monster did only have a few small items with him. Papyrus allowed him to pass ahead. He threw his items carelessly onto the conveyor, with little regard for those around him (Or the items themselves that matter; given the fact that one of the items was a chip bag and another was some kind of energy drink, it wouldn’t have taken much for them to burst). Having thrown the last item (A box of powdered donuts) onto the conveyor, he took a look back at Papyrus.

“Dude. You should seriously get that loose thread fixed. You look like you picked that outfit up at a second-hand store and haven’t washed it since.”

Before Papyrus could comment, the monster sneezed into his hands and turned around, tapping away at his phone. As the monster checked his items out, Papyrus couldn’t help but feel extremely self-conscious about his appearance; if it really warranted that sort of comment, perhaps it was more of a pressing issue than he realized.

Once he had paid for his items, he left, muttering about how cashiers seriously needed to learn to pick up the pace. The cashier in question glared at him as he left the store, before turning back to Papyrus.

“Ugh, I, like, super hate that guy. Like, SORRY I wasn’t super fast counting your small change. Jerk.”

While Papyrus was never one to insult people, he couldn’t help but sympathize with the alligator monster in front of him. The monster had been rather rude, and he supposed that it was better to air your grievances to another person when you could.

“Ah! Sorry, dude. Today has, like, totally sucked. Pretty sure he was a jerk to you too, so, like, I figure you’d get it?”

Papyrus did get it. Not only about being a victim of unnecessary rude behaviour, but also about the difficulty of maintaining a positive outlook during a particularly rough morning.

“WELL, MISS... BRATTY? I BELIEVE THAT YOU’RE DOING QUITE WELL; MAINTAINING YOUR COMPOSURE IN SITUATIONS LIKE THESE CAN BE QUITE DIFFICULT! IN FACT, I WOULD GO AS FAR AS TO SAY THAT YOU’RE DOING EXCEPTIONALLY WELL!”

As she scanned the last of his items through, she seemed taken aback. At first, he was almost worried that he had said something wrong or that she doubted the sincerity of his compliment (He thought that the concept of a compliment being insincere was quite strange in itself, but he understood that it was, indeed, something that happened; it had taken months before Alphys understood that he was being sincere when he complimented her). This only lasted for a moment, however: a blush crept up her cheeks as he paid her for his items.

“Wow, uh... thanks, dude. It’s, like, not very often we get any positive feedback around here. Y’know, forget what I said about today sucking. I mean, it SUPER sucked, but, like, I got a good feeling about the rest of it!”

She gave him a sincere smile, clearly in better spirits. He returned the smile and gathered his bags.

“I THINK THAT YOU MAY BE RIGHT! THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR EXCELLENT SERVICE, AND I HOPE THAT THE REST OF YOUR DAY GOES WELL!”

He left the supermarket, carrying the bags with gusto. Although his apparently unsightly clothing was still lingering on his mind, he was not quite as concerned as he had been; not only had his trip been a success, he also felt as if he could perhaps be making a new friend! 

Yes, he was absolutely certain that the rest of today would go perfectly!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that could have gone worse!
> 
> Even though I didn't mention him by name, pretty sure y'all know who the rude monster was. While I don't see it as making too much sense that Papyrus wouldn't know who he is, I decided that "some random guy making things more difficult" fit the narrative better than the "he's literally so bad that even Papyrus hates him" interpretation did.
> 
> See y'all next time!


	3. Drives and Detours

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Supplies ready, it's finally time for Papyrus to get going to the party!
> 
> Unless, of course, something or someone (or multiple someones) cause delays.

Papyrus made his way back into his and sans’ house. He quickly unloaded the groceries, before heading back to his room to gather the remaining party supplies. Although he was a little behind schedule, he was on-track to be on time to help Toriel to set up for the party.

He reached into his closet and gathered what he had made. Some of it was certainly rather unconventional (For example, rather than pinning a tail on a donkey, Papyrus had made a game of pinning the skull onto a skeleton. He had to admit that the black paint that had run along the skull made the figure seem a touch more unsettling than he intended, but he knew that Frisk would like it all the same), but it was all made with love. Before bringing it downstairs, however, he took another look in the mirror.

The loose thread on his battle body did seem quite noticeable. As much as he loved his battle body, he felt that, perhaps just for today, it would be better to leave it at home. Besides that, his special clothes were quite fetching, so he supposed that they would be suitable to wear to the party.

He quickly changed out of his battle body and looked himself over once more. Yes, he did indeed look quite handsome! Having solved yet another of today’s problems, he strode down the stairs, bringing the last of the supplies with him. Once he had everything, he carried all of it outside and put it into the trunk of his car.

Truthfully, he was a touch concerned about driving today, given the engine troubles that he had been warned about by the mechanics. They had thoroughly assured him that there was no risk to others; if the engine took any real damage, the worst that would happen would be the engine cutting out and the car stopping. They had explained that, should he go at a high speed, it could be hazardous, but whatever had happened to cause the engine troubles would also cause the engine to cut out should he go anywhere near such speeds.

If he could count on one thing, it was that loaning something to Undyne would result not only in that thing being damaged, but also that the damage would be spectacularly incomprehensible. He really should have known the consequences before handing her the keys.

Nevertheless, those keys were in his possession again, and he would most assuredly have no issues when driving. He loved that car almost as much as he loved himself (Which was a very high bar; even with the amount of love Papyrus had to give, few could claim to reach such high love-rankings), and he would not do anything that would put it at risk unless absolutely necessary.

He went back inside and saw sans sitting on the couch. He had a disconcerting knack for appearing as soon as any hard work was finished.

“hey bro. everything ready for the party?”

“YOU KNOW THAT IT IS, SANS! IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU NEED TO DO BEFORE WE LEAVE?”

“actually, now that you mention it, i didn’t actually write out my card. mind if i do that real quick, bro?”

Papyrus was exasperated, but he supposed that, at the very least, it would only take a few minutes.

“VERY WELL, SANS. BUT PLEASE, DO HURRY! WE DON’T WANT TO BE LATE FOR THE PARTY!”

sans simply winked and strolled casually up to his room. His irreverence truly was something else at times. Before Papyrus could get too wound up thinking about it, his phone began to ring. He answered and, before he could greet the caller, his non-existent ears were assaulted:

“PAPYRUS!”

“HELLO TO YOU TOO UNDYNE! IS EVERYTHING ALRIGHT?”

“Uh, not really... so, Alphy and I were gonna get a taxi over for the party, but there was a... uh, a problem with the taxi service. Long story short, I’m on their blacklist permanently, even though the driver didn’t even end up in the hospital! Anyway, would you be able to give us a ride?”

It seemed that, even with Papyrus’ work to get back on schedule, the universe was not on his side today. Not to mention his engine troubles, which could leave the four of them stranded, should anything go wrong.

“I DON’T KNOW, UNDYNE... YOU KNOW THAT MY CAR’S ENGINE ISN’T IN THE BEST OF SHAPE RIGHT NOW...”

“Come ON Papyrus! Please?!? If you can’t help us, no one can!”

He sighed to himself. He supposed that as long as he was careful, there wasn’t any real risk, right? Right, he wasn’t going to let his friends down!

“DON’T WORRY, UNDYNE! I’LL BE THERE AS SOON AS I CAN!”

“Awesome! Knew I could count on you, Papyrus!”

She hung up the phone and Papyrus ran through a variety of different ways to salvage the situation should problems arise. He was beginning to worry, however, as none of the solutions seemed particularly likely to work. Before any panic could set in, sans strolled back down the stairs, card in hand.

“thanks for waiting, bro. took a while to come up with a message that they’d appreciate, but i got a good feelin’ the kid’s gonna love it.”

The two headed to Papyrus’ car. Although the engine sounded a little strained, it had no trouble running, which was all that he needed. He quickly explained to sans that they were taking a quick detour to collect Undyne and Alphys. sans merely gave him a thumbs up and dozed off in the passenger seat.

Papyrus drove slowly, making his way to Undyne and Alphys’ house. Thankfully, they were standing outside their front door, ready and waiting, by the time that he arrived. Words couldn’t describe how grateful he was to have avoided another delay.

The two hopped into the car (Well, Undyne hopped in. Alphys simply opened the door and got in the normal way) and Undyne gave him a quick glance before letting out a guffaw.

“Papyrus, WHAT are you wearing?!”

Although hurt by the insinuation that there was something wrong with his outfit, Papyrus ensured that his expression did not betray his feelings. He wore a confident grin and explained to her that what he was wearing was a carefully designed fashion masterpiece. She gave him a grin and a thumbs-up in response.

“Sure is! You rock it, Papyrus!”

Satisfied, Papyrus began the slightly longer drive to Toriel’s house. It seemed inevitable that they were going to be somewhat late, but he was sure that Toriel would understand. That being said, he couldn’t show up late without informing her!

“UNDYNE, DR. ALPHYS, COULD ONE OF YOU PLEASE CALL TORIEL AND TELL HER THAT WE’RE GOING TO BE LATE? I WOULDN’T WANT TO LEAVE HER WONDERING, AFTER ALL!”

“Ah... I’ll d-do it. I-it’s our f-fault that we’re running l-late.”

Before Papyrus could reassure her, Alphys had begun the call with Toriel. He couldn’t watch her facial expressions, needing to keep his eyes on the road, but her wavering tone made it sound as though Toriel wasn’t happy. Once Alphys had said her goodbyes, she hung up the phone.

“Oh g-geez, she sounded p-pretty mad.”

“Aw Alphy, you worry too much! You’re probably just exaggerating!”

Papyrus understood that Alphys had something of a tendency to catastrophize, but he had the feeling that she probably wasn’t too far off on this occasion. Nevertheless, there was nothing that could be done, and they’d simply have to make up for their lateness by doing an amazing job with helping to set up!

His thoughts were interrupted by an aggravated grunt from the back-seat.

“NGAH! Come on, Papyrus, can’t you go any faster? Gerson could probably beat us there on foot at this rate!”

“UNDYNE, YOU KNOW THAT THE CAR’S ENGINE IS HAVING DIFFICULTIES RIGHT NOW! IF I DRIVE TOO QUICKLY, THE ENGINE WILL CUT OUT!”

“Okay, but do you HAVE to drive at like, 4 miles an hour?”

The conversation lasted for the rest of the drive, with Papyrus repeatedly trying to explain that no, driving faster was not possible and no, hitting the engine until it worked again was not an option. Alphys attempted to derail the conversation a few times, but Undyne was insistent that there HAD to be a way to go faster.

Papyrus really, really wished there was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now we can start to get into Papyrus' relationships with other characters!
> 
> Obviously, there's more to come, but this is where the ball starts rolling.
> 
> Thank you for the support, everyone! I'll make sure to keep things rolling steadily!


	4. Party Proceedings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having finally reached Toriel's house, it's time to get the party underway!
> 
> Even on the best of days, parties never go according to plan. Let's see how this one plays out!

By the time that they arrived at Toriel’s house, Papyrus was honestly a little tired. He loved Undyne’s ability to be enthusiastic and give her all in everything she did, but at times like these, her stubbornness did make things difficult.

The three of them gathered the bags (sans, of course, took the important job of knocking on the door so that it would be open by the time they had brought the bags over). Toriel opened the door and ushered them in.

“Come now, quickly everyone! Given the delay, we have little time before Frisk arrives!”

None of them missed the edge in her voice. Although he knew that she was somewhat unhappy with their late arrival, he decided to attribute it mostly to the stress of organizing a party for a loved one. He knew that, like himself, she was a perfectionist, and would not settle for a party that was not as magnificent as it could be.

Toriel had baked a special pie for the party, and sans took over the very important duty of watching it while it cooled. Meanwhile, Papyrus, Toriel, Alphys and Undyne began to set up the decorations. Things were going quite smoothly, until Toriel reached the bag that contained Papyrus’ home-made decorations.

“Ah, Papyrus, dear...? These decorations are quite, er... well-made, but perhaps they might not quite fit with the others?”

Papyrus had figured that she would have had some disagreements on what decorations should be used and where; that being said, he hadn’t expected his own decorations to be the problem! Since today was about Frisk, he decided to set aside his misgivings and accept that his decorations would go unused.

“YOU DO RAISE A VALID POINT! I WOULDN’T WANT MY DECORATIONS TO OVERSHADOW THE OTHERS, AFTER ALL!”

She seemed content with his answer, and put his crafts to one side. Once the decorations were all sorted, Toriel went into the kitchen to put the candles in the pie. Only a few seconds after she had left, there was a loud knock on the door.

“I’LL GET IT!” Papyrus exclaimed, before bolting towards the door.

Papyrus opened the door, and was greeted by one of the few figures he knew that was taller than he was.

“HELLO, YOUR MAJESTY!”

“Howdy, Papyrus! May we come in?”

Papyrus was rather confused, as Asgore seemed to be alone. Until, of course, he looked down and saw the small potted plant in his hands.

“OH, YOU’VE BROUGHT FLOWEY WITH YOU! YES, OF COURSE, COME IN!”

Asgore thanked Papyrus and walked into the living room. He had only begun to speak to Undyne when Toriel entered the room. She did very little to hide her anger.

“ _What_ are you doing here, Dreemurr?”

“Flowey and I merely wanted to wish Frisk a happy bir-”

“So, not only do you disrespect my wishes for you to stay away from this house, you also thought it appropriate to bring _one of the most dangerous creatures in the Underground_ with you?”

“Please, Tori, he and Frisk are-”

“Do NOT Tori me, Asgore!”

It was abundantly clear that things were going to go south very quickly unless this argument was sorted.

“TORIEL, I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU AND ASGORE DO NOT HAVE THE GREATEST OF RELATIONSHIPS AT THE MOMENT, BUT SURELY THERE IS NO HARM IN HIM SIMPLY STOPPING BY?”

Her glare said otherwise.

“Papyrus, dear, I understand what you are trying to say, but I have made it clear to Asgore that he is _not_ welcome in my household. You should have told me that he was here before letting him in!”

Before Papyrus could apologize, a much lighter knock sounded from the door. Toriel scrambled to the lights and instructed everyone to hide. She turned to Asgore before switching them off.

“As it seems there is no time for you to leave, you may stay to wish Frisk a happy birthday. _Should_ Frisk invite you to stay for longer, I will not object, but you are to leave my home as soon as possible. Are we clear?”

He nodded meekly, and Toriel switched off the lights. Papyrus could not help but feel a twinge of guilt, having assumed that the two were, at the very least, on speaking terms at this point. As if nothing at all had been wrong, she called out in a much sweeter tone of voice, “Come in, my child!”

The door opened, and Frisk walked in with Monster Kid, returning from a sleepover at the latter’s home. They made their way to the living room, where everyone jumped out to surprise Frisk. Well, everyone except for sans, who merely waved.

Frisk, naturally, was delighted. They went around, hugging and thanking everyone in the room. Once they reached Toriel, she told them that she had prepared a special pie for their birthday, and could eat some when they were ready. Frisk, to Toriel’s chagrin, asked everyone to stay to have a slice. Nevertheless, she cut slices for everyone in the room, which Papyrus offered to pass around. 

Everyone thanked Toriel for the pie, commending her for her cooking (Except for Flowey, who offered a sarcastic “Yeah, thanks.” and said nothing more). Once everyone had finished their pie, it was time for the gifts to be given.

Frisk loved all of their presents; Papyrus’ handmade scarf and personally designed book of puzzles were met with gratitude and a hug, which Papyrus believed to be the two best gifts that one could receive. Soon after, Frisk read sans’ card, which seemed hilarious to them. When they showed the card to everyone else, the plain white sheet with “happy birthday kid – sans” didn’t draw as many laughs.

Once all of the gifts had been passed around, the party games began. The first game was a simple round of twenty questions. Frisk immediately asked Asgore to ask them the first question. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

“Ah, well, little one, I...” he trailed off, glancing over to Toriel. She rolled her eyes and gave him a curt nod. He smiled, and returned his gaze to Frisk.

“Very well. Now, let me see...”

The game began, and two rounds passed. Before the third round began, Papyrus offered to clean the dishes (Which he would have done sooner, of course, but he could never say no to a few puzzling party games! Although Asgore’s answer of ‘Frisk’ was very easily deduced, Monster Kid’s answer of a waterfall very nearly eluded everyone, including himself!). Toriel thanked him, and he stood up to make his way to the kitchen.

“Golly, Papyrus, you shouldn’t have to do all that cleaning by yourself! Why don’t you take me with you so I can help?”

Although Flowey’s saccharine act was fooling no one, Papyrus nonetheless accepted his friend’s offer to help.

“hey, bro. c’mere a sec?”

Papyrus made his way over to sans, who threw a single small bone in his direction.

“...BROTHER, IS THERE SOME FORM OF JAPERY THAT I’M NOT PRIVY TO HERE?”

“nah. just wanted to show everyone how much HP you got. gotta remind everyone how great you are every once in a while, right?” he said with a wink.

Papyrus decided not to question his brother’s odd behaviour.

“WHILE I ADMIT THAT I DON’T QUITE UNDERSTAND YOUR REASONING, YOU ARE INDEED CORRECT; A REMINDER THAT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, POSSESS GREAT RESILIENCE, NEVER GOES AMISS! COME ON, FLOWEY, LET’S GO CLEAN THE DISHES!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy this should be a fun little time of washing the dishes with a pal, no room for anything to go wrong there
> 
> (Also Asgore is a genius and only has good ideas)


	5. Mulchy Musings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As promised, Papyrus is going to do the dishes!
> 
> While Flowey has offered to help, there isn't actually much he can do. Let's see what he has in store!

Papyrus placed the dishes into the sink and placed Flowey’s pot onto the counter.

“GIVEN YOUR LACK OF... ANY APPENDAGES, WASHING DISHES MAY BE DIFFICULT FOR YOU. HOW WOULD YOU FEEL ABOUT BEING MY MORAL SUPPORT?”

“Uh... yeah, sure.”

Flowey’s lack of enthusiasm was abundantly clear, but Papyrus figured that he might brighten up if he was given a moment. Sure enough, Flowey soon perked up and smiled at Papyrus.

“Toriel is so nice, isn’t she, Papyrus?”

“SHE IS! SHE IS A GREAT FRIEND TO HAVE!”

“It was especially nice of her to forgive you for that blunder earlier! She has such a kind heart!”

Papyrus nearly dropped the plate he was holding. Once he had regained his grip, he resumed the conversation, bracing himself for Flowey’s _very_ honest commentary.

“WHATEVER DO YOU MEAN, FLOWEY?”

“Hm? Don’t you remember, Papyrus? She was reeeaaaallllly not happy when Asgore and I showed up. Considering how much she hates him, and how much most of you hate me, I’d figure that anyone would have been smart enough not to let us in! But you went and invited us into someone else’s home without a second thought!”

Before Papyrus could offer what would have been a half-hearted defense at best, Flowey’s grin widened, and he continued.

“Now Toriel’s having a bad time because Asgore is here, Asgore is having a bad time because Toriel hates him, and even your brother is having a bad time because I’m here! I know a lot of people would be really angry with you, so it’s really nice of Toriel to forgive you for coming so close to ruining Frisk’s day!”

Papyrus could feel his heart sinking. As always, Flowey was right; even if his words were cruel, Papyrus could not deny that they had merit. He hadn’t even considered how badly his actions could be affecting everyone. How many negative feelings were being shoved aside for Frisk’s sake, all because Papyrus couldn’t think ahead? And that was without taking into account his late arrival!

Flowey’s expression changed once more; he now bore a set of fangs, and his pupils were white.

“Let me warn you about something, Papyrus. Your ‘friends’ in there? It’s all a lie. Asgore, Toriel, even your brother... they’re all playing dumb, hiding how they really feel. If you can’t trust them to be honest about their feelings, what _can_ you trust them to be honest about? None of them will admit how badly you _screwed up_. None of them will admit how angry or sad they are with you. And do you know why that is, Papyrus?”

Papyrus had just finished cleaning the dishes, but he really wasn’t comfortable looking away from the sink. He shook his head, and allowed Flowey to continue.

“It’s because they can _get_ something out of you, Papyrus. Your brother is annoyed with you for letting me in, but someone’s gotta do all the housework, right? Toriel is mad too, but notice how sweet she got when you started doing things for her? I bet you did most of the work for decorating, didn’t you? But then, where did those home-made decorations sitting in the corner come from? She had no problem with you working, but as soon as you tried to do things your way, all of a sudden there’s a problem.”

“...WHY ARE YOU SAYING ALL OF THIS, FLOWEY? EVEN IF YOU’RE RIGHT, WHY BRING IT UP?”

Flowey’s malicious look faded, and he once more sported a cheeky smile.

“Huh? Why? Well, isn’t it obvious? It’s because you’re my best friend, Papyrus! That much hasn’t changed!”

After saying that, his look soured.

“Frisk is a good kid, Papyrus, but not everyone’s as nice as they are. Not to mention, not everyone gets the same... opportunities... that they do. Someone like you is just gonna get manipulated, Papyrus; you do all these nice things for other people, and what do you get back? Friends who lie, use you and want nothing to do with you unless you’re useful. I’m not lying, Papyrus, I really _do_ like you. If you don’t want to listen, that’s fine, but you really should keep what I’m saying in mind. When you’re doing all this stuff for someone else, think of all the nice stuff _they’ve_ done for _you_.”

Papyrus, as was the norm when discussing his emotions with Flowey, was left with a strange feeling; it was crushing, but it also felt like an enormous weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Although a sizeable portion of what Flowey said to him tended to be hurtful or just dark in general, Papyrus did appreciate their conversations; it really did feel good to have someone be so open with him. No coddling, no hiding things, just brutal honesty, something that no one else ever seemed willing to give him.

Even if his spirits weren’t quite as high as they were before entering the kitchen, Papyrus had to admit that he was very glad to have talked to Flowey.

“THANK YOU FOR YOUR HONESTY, FLOWEY. I DON’T KNOW IF I AGREE WITH MOST OF WHAT YOU SAID, BUT I’M GLAD THAT YOU SAID IT.” 

“Sure thing, Papyrus.”

And with that, the pair left the kitchen, dishes cleaned and put away.

They returned to a game of pin the tail on the donkey (Papyrus couldn’t help but feel a pang of disappointment that ‘pin the skull on the skeleton’ seemed to have been completely forgotten), wherein Alphys was very carefully moving forward, trying to follow the cacophony of advice coming from everyone else in the room. Papyrus set Flowey down on the table and returned to his seat beside sans, who didn’t seem to be paying the game much attention. To be honest, Papyrus wasn’t paying much attention either, Flowey’s words still fresh in his mind.

He was roused from his thoughts when sans grabbed him by the arm.

“IS EVERYTHING ALRIGHT, BROTHER?”

“everything’s fine by me, bro. how ‘bout you? considerin’ ya didn’t even notice me throwin’ a bone in your direction, i feel like somethin’s on your mind.”

Papyrus knew that sans was more perceptive than he let on. Still, Papyrus wasn’t in much of a mood to share his emotions. Given the cheers that had erupted following Alphys’ successful job of pinning the tail on the donkey, Papyrus reasoned that all that would do was ruin the fun for everyone at the party.

“WHY, THERE’S NO NEED TO WORRY ABOUT ME, SANS! SAY, I BELIEVE THAT IT’S MY TURN TO ENGAGE WITH THE PARTY GAMES!”

Papyrus didn’t think sans was convinced, but he simply shrugged his shoulders.

“welp. if ya wanna talk, ya know where to find me.”

Papyrus couldn’t help but think that no, half of the time he _didn’t_ know where to find him. Before he could think any further, Asgore stood up, holding Flowey’s pot.

“It was lovely to see all of you again, but we really must be heading home. Frisk, I hope that the rest of your birthday goes well, and I hope to see you again very soon!”

Frisk gave both Flowey and Asgore a hug (Which, as one could expect, Asgore welcomed happily while Flowey passed no comments or reactions). Asgore looked over to Toriel and thanked her for allowing him to stop by. Her only response was another curt nod, a clear indication that this was not to become a common occurrence.

“Would anyone like a ride home? It would be no trouble at all!”

“A-actually, your m-majes- uh, I mean, Asgore... if, um, if your route g-goes anywhere near m-mine and Undyne’s place... ah, if th-that’s okay with you, Undyne?”

Alphys seemed nervous about asking, but Undyne didn’t seem fazed. She merely gave Alphys a kiss on the cheek and a pat on the back.

“You don’t need my permission! I’ll see you later tonight, babe!”

“S-see you later... b-babe!”

Immediately after realizing what she had just said, Alphys quickly wished Frisk a happy birthday and made a beeline for the front door. Asgore simply chuckled and followed suit.

Papyrus couldn’t honestly say that he was very focused for the rest of the evening, but thankfully very little happened that actually required him to do so; Frisk and Monster Kid went to Frisk’s room to play while the adult monsters cleaned up. Well, that’s how it was in the beginning, at least; soon after starting, sans was fast asleep, Undyne was checking through the Undernet on her phone and Toriel had simply sat down on her armchair to rest. While this was a common occurrence, he couldn’t help but wonder if Flowey’s words had any weight; would anyone take issue if _he_ stopped cleaning?

Papyrus pushed the thoughts away and returned to his cleaning. Once everything was tidy, Toriel called Frisk and Monster Kid down to watch a movie. Once Frisk had made their choice, everyone sat down to watch it. While Papyrus would normally take a great interest (As Frisk had impeccable taste in movies), he simply couldn’t give the movie his full attention; his time was spent wondering what everyone was thinking, wondering if Toriel was still mad at him, wondering if sans _was_ mad about him allowing Flowey in...

Papyrus was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he hadn’t even noticed that the movie had ended until Toriel stood up to turn the lights on. She thanked everyone for coming, and for helping with preparations. Frisk followed suit, once again giving hugs out and thanking everyone for coming. They wished everyone a good night and went off to bed.

Toriel told everyone that she was going to put Frisk to bed, but everyone was welcome to stay as long as they liked, and could help themselves to any leftover pie if they wanted. She smiled at the remaining guests before leaving to follow Frisk.

sans was the first to sit up after Toriel had left. He walked over to Monster Kid.

“hey kid. want me to walk ya home?”

“Okay, thanks! I could probably go myself, but my parents would probably get mad and stuff, so, uh... yo, I appreciate it!”

“no problem, kid. hey, bro, I might stop by grillby’s before i head back, so no need to wait up, k?”

Papyrus couldn’t tell if that meant “I want to spend a few hours in my favourite hangout” or “I have secret business to attend to”, not that he ever could as far as sans was concerned.

“ALRIGHT, SANS. JUST REMEMBER TO BRING YOUR KEY!”

“sure thing, bro. c’mon kid, let’s get movin’”

Monster Kid bounded over to sans’ side, bidding Papyrus and Undyne a good night before they departed. This left Papyrus and Undyne as the only ones yet to leave.

“Hey Papyrus, any chance I could get a ride home?”

Although Papyrus wasn’t too thrilled about having to take the longer route home, he couldn’t allow a friend to walk such a distance, let alone at such a late hour.

“OF COURSE, UNDYNE. LET’S GO!”

If she noticed his lack of vigour, she made no comment on it. They got into the car and Papyrus turned the ignition on. The noises coming from the engine had worsened, leaving a pit in Papyrus’ proverbial stomach. The noises, mixed with the nagging doubts that had arisen in his mind, made for some very uncomfortable feelings as Papyrus began to drive.

Once more, he pushed the negative thoughts and feelings aside. He couldn’t help but notice, however, how much he was forcing it. Still, all he had to do was make it home, he could worry about everything else when he had gotten there.

It wasn’t that far of a distance, what could go wrong in such a short period of time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, now that the party's over, Papyrus is going to go home easily and have a nice night and nothing will go wrong.


	6. The Day's Disastrous Denouement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just this one last car ride. Down to Undyne's, then home. That was all that Papyrus had to do, and today would be over.
> 
> Of course, with certain discussions still fresh on his mind, Papyrus should have figured that some conversation topics wouldn't go well.

Although Papyrus had had his doubts about how the journey would go, he tried to remain optimistic; after all, while there had been low points in his day, there had also been several high points! Besides, it was just himself and his best friend in the car! His best friend that he trusted entirely!

...Well, he supposed that there were _some_ doubts. As her best friend, Papyrus thought that it was horrible of him to doubt her; while he understood Flowey’s judgement, he couldn’t believe that Undyne would lie to him! He realized that there was only one way to settle these tempestuous thoughts:

“...SAY, UNDYNE?”

“Yeah?”

He took a brief moment to prepare his words; he wanted to ensure that she understood what he was asking, which was difficult enough, given that he wasn’t entirely sure himself. He also had to be careful to leave Flowey out of it; if ever Papyrus brought up a problem that Flowey mentioned, it was simply dismissed as “That evil little weed is manipulating you, Papyrus!”, which, even if Papyrus understood what people meant, was still extremely frustrating.

“WHICH ELEMENT OF BEING A ROYAL GUARD DO YOU THINK I WOULD HAVE HAD THE MOST DIFFICULTY WITH?”

“...Huh?”

“I MEAN... MY TRAINING TOOK MUCH LONGER THAN ANY OF THE OTHER GUARDS, BE IT THE DOGS OR THE HOTLAND GUARDS. I ASSUME THAT THAT COMES DOWN TO A CERTAIN QUALITY THAT I LACKED THAT THEY DID NOT?”

Papyrus could see that she was becoming nervous; she had a hand on the back of her neck, and he could tell that she was scrambling for an answer. Although he hated to put such pressure on his friend, he knew that the end result would be worth it.

“DON’T WORRY, UNDYNE, I UNDERSTAND WHY YOU’VE NEVER SAID ANYTHING BEFORE THIS: OBVIOUSLY, YOU WANTED ME TO INTUIT THE PROBLEM BY MYSELF, AND WANTED ME TO ACHIEVE MY STATUS AS A ROYAL GUARD COMPLETELY BY MYSELF, WHICH WAS BOTH NOBLE AND CONSIDERATE OF YOU!”

“Y-yeah, that’s it...”

“HOWEVER! AS THE ROYAL GUARD HAS DISBANDED, I NO LONGER HAVE THE ABILITY TO JOIN, NO MATTER HOW MANY FLAWS I IMPROVE! SO, SURELY YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN THINGS TO ME NOW? NOT ONLY WOULD IT HELP ME TO IMPROVE, BUT I’M SURE THAT IT WOULD BE BETTER FOR EVERYONE IF I UNDERSTOOD MY OWN SHORTCOMINGS!”

He was surprised by the fact that Undyne still seemed tense. Perhaps his problems were more serious than he had realized? He was mainly expecting her to admit to his lack of foresight shown at the party, but perhaps the problems were even more serious than that? He grew nervous himself as he awaited her response.

“Well, uh... y’know... how about... driving the car so slow, huh? It feels like we’re going even _slower_ than we did on the way up!”

Papyrus couldn’t deny that that was just about the worst possible answer he could have received. Firstly, they _were_ going slower, as he needed to ensure that the damage to his car didn’t become completely irreparable. Secondly, the lack of sincerity was shocking; not only had she completely deflected his question, but she was attempting to switch topics entirely!

_“If you can’t trust them to be honest about their feelings, what can you trust them to be honest about?”_

Papyrus shook the thoughts away, knowing that he could get an honest answer from Undyne if he approached the issue carefully. He wasn’t going to give up on her; even if Flowey was one of his best friends, he couldn’t stop trusting Undyne, no matter what! He knew that she respected him, and he could tell Flowey as much the next time he went to Mt. Ebott to visit him!

“...SO, WOULD MY TRAINING HAVE LASTED MUCH LONGER, OR WAS IT MORE THE CASE THAT I WOULD HAVE PASSED ONCE I UNDERSTOOD MY SHORTCOMINGS A LITTLE BETTER?”

“Geez Papyrus, why do you keep bringing it up? Like you said, there isn’t a Royal Guard any more, does it really matter?”

The way that she snapped at him was certainly disconcerting. He was starting to think that maybe she _was_ hiding something from him. A thought that he once again banished; although he did love Undyne, he knew that she could be very difficult to get through to, at times. All he had to do was be honest, and he was sure that she’d see it his way.

“IT MATTERS TO ME. I TRUST YOU, UNDYNE, WHICH IS WHY I’M ASKING; I KNOW THAT IF ANYONE CAN GUIDE ME IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION, IT’S YOU!”

Although he was hoping that that would encourage her, it seemed to have the opposite effect. She looked away from him, and seemed even more tense than before.

“Look, Papyrus, the only way I’m gonna guide you is away from this topic. No matter what answer I give you, it won’t change the fact that there isn’t a Royal Guard to be in any more!”

Why was she deflecting so much on this? All she had to do was admit that he had something wrong with him. Did she think that he was the type of person that wouldn’t accept what she had to say? Surely, by now, she understood that if she honestly told him that he was doing something wrong, he’d try his best to understand and adapt, right? She knew him better than anyone, so _why_ was she so insistent on refusing to answer this question?

_“None of them will admit how badly you screwed up.”_

...Was that it? Had he done something to wrong her personally that she hadn’t forgiven him for?

“...LOOK, UNDYNE. I UNDERSTAND THAT EVEN I’M NOT PERFECT. I SPOKE WITH FLOWEY THIS EVENING, AND HE-”

“Problem solved! Don’t listen to that manipulative little weed! All he does is get into your head and think less of yourself”

As he had expected, the problem was dismissed as soon as Flowey was brought into the equation. While he understood that most of his friends were completely unwilling to forgive Flowey, he felt that he couldn’t stand by on this occasion.

“UNDYNE, FLOWEY IS MY FRIEND. I UNDERSTAND THAT-”

“Papyrus, even if we ignore him _stealing our souls_ , the way you describe him sounds straight up sociopathic!”

“HE NEVER MANIPULATED ME, UNDYNE. SOMETIMES HE DID GET ME TO DO THINGS FOR HIS OWN GAIN, BUT HE WAS UPFRONT ABOUT IT!”

“Oh, so even if he was an evil, manipulative little weed, he was _honest_ about it. Papyrus, that’s not exactly a great defense.”

Papyrus could actually start to feel himself getting tense, he was trying not to let things get heated, but the day had been quite difficult, and he couldn’t deny that what Flowey had said had made a little _too_ much sense for him to be comfortable with. The current situation wasn’t helping matters.

“WELL, UNDYNE, I DO HAPPEN TO APPRECIATE HIS HONESTY. FOR SOME REASON, HE SEEMS TO BE THE ONLY PERSON I KNOW THAT WILL ADMIT TO BEING ANGRY OR UPSET WITH ME! OR IS WILLING TO TELL ME WHAT PROBLEMS I HAVE THAT ARE HOLDING ME BACK FROM BEING THE BEST PERSON I CAN BE!”

“Papyrus, you already ARE an amazing person! Why are you trusting him over me on this?!”

“I’M NOT TRYING TO DEVALUE ANYONE’S OPINION! IT’S JUST... I FEEL LIKE THERE’S SOMETHING THAT YOU’RE NOT TELLING ME, UNDYNE. YOU’RE MY BEST FRIEND, AND IT’S BOTHERING ME TO THINK THAT THERE’S SOMETHING THAT I’M DOING WRONG THAT YOU WOULDN’T TELL ME ABOUT.”

“Papyrus. This is just that little creep trying to turn you against everyone. You’re always so happy, but whenever he gets involved, you end up with all these weird thoughts and you think less of yourself than you should! _Why_ is that, Papyrus?”

If he was honest? He _wasn’t_ always happy. He just preferred not to burden anyone with his problems when everyone he cared about already had so much to worry about already. Flowey was the one person he had that he could actually admit that to, because Flowey was the only one who seemed capable of _accepting_ that. Who didn’t just blindly dismiss him, but was willing to actually turn around sometimes and say ‘Yeah, Papyrus, using grass instead of parsley is a really stupid idea’ or ‘Y’know, Papyrus, some people actually _don’t_ like puzzles as much as you do, and just get annoyed when you bring them up.’

He must have spent longer than he realized mulling it over, as Undyne continued, seemingly haven taken his silence as an answer.

“It’s because he manipulates you into thinking this stuff. The only thing you’re doing wrong is treating him like he has ANY capability of being a decent person! So let’s just drop this conversation and forget ANYTHING that he says!”

Papyrus had to concede defeat. He couldn’t help but feel disappointed; not only was she hellbent on avoiding his problem, she hadn’t answered any of the questions that he’d asked her, even when he admitted that it was, to him, a serious problem.

“...ALRIGHT, UNDYNE. I WON’T ASK ANY MORE.”

She grunted in affirmation, but didn’t bring anything new to the table, so the conversation died away. The two sat in awkward silence, tensions rising as they continued their journey in silence. It didn’t help that, due to the slow speed that the car was moving at, they still had something of a distance to go.

Even if Papyrus was still upset, he didn’t want to make his friend uncomfortable. He tried to think of conversation topics without coming across as insincere. Before he could come up with anything, Undyne seemed to reach her boiling point.

“Papyrus, _seriously_ , there’s no way that the car has to go this slow.”

He couldn’t help but be frustrated once more; no matter how rough the silence was, he didn’t want this argument to start up again, especially when there was a lingering issue between the two.

“UNDYNE, PLEASE, I KNOW WHAT I’M DOING. IF I GO TOO QUICKLY, THE CAR’S ENGINE WILL-”

“Yeah, I get it, the engine’s a little rusty, but if you get there _faster_ -”

“UNDYNE, IF I GO FASTER, THE ENGINE WILL BE DAMAGED, AND THEN I WON’T BE GOING ANYWHERE!”

“Watch, Papyrus: I’m gonna _prove_ to you that you’re worrying too much!”

“WAIT, UNDYNE, WHAT ARE YOU-”

Before he could finish his sentence, she slammed her hand onto his leg, pushing his foot right down on the accelerator.

The engine roared, but the roar was immediately followed by a loud bang as the car slowed down to a halt. Smoke rose from the bonnet, and Papyrus could just feel his soul split as it became clear to him that his beloved car may be beyond saving.

He tried to focus, but simply couldn’t manage it. He really, really tried to maintain his composure, scrambling to come up with a way for this to be okay. Even if the damage was serious, all he had to do was push the car home, right? Or...OR, maybe the car wasn’t even broken? Maybe it was just a coincidence, and he had simply run out of gas!

His panic must have been evident, as Undyne also seemed uneasy.

“Okay, s-so, uh... that wasn’t a great idea. But I can still fix it! Don’t worry, Papyrus, I’ll take a look at your engine and it’ll be as good as new, you won’t even need to go back to the mechanics!”

“UNDYNE, PLEASE JUST _STOP_ -”

“NO WAY, PAPYRUS! I’m gonna FIX this problem and everything will be FINE!”

She leapt out of the car and lifted the bonnet. She gagged as the smoke engulfed her, stepping back to allow some of it to escape before taking another look.

The look on her face didn’t fill him with confidence.

“Y-yeah, I can do this! Alphie shows me machines all the time, they’re all the same, more or less!”

Her reasoning didn’t make sense.

“I just gotta.. take this... thingie here and, uh... p-put it with that one? No, that one, and, uh...”

She had no idea what she was doing.

She tinkered around for a few more moments, but eventually gave up. Without a moment’s hesitation, she hopped back into the car.

She didn’t seem to notice that the dirt from her boots had caked itself onto the car doors or seats. She didn’t notice all of the oil that she had splashed onto the dashboard. Oil and dirt which would probably be impossible to wash out by the time he could get the car to anywhere where he could actually do so.

“Okay, new plan: I’ll call Alphie, and she can-”

“UNDYNE, PLEASE GET OUT OF MY CAR. RIGHT NOW.”

Okay, okay, just think positively. He could still salvage today if... if...

“Papyrus, come on, it was an accident!”

That was it. There was no salvaging today.

“UNDYNE. GET OUT OF MY CAR, **NOW!** ”

“Papyrus, hold on-”

“NO, UNDYNE, ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! YOU’RE GOING TO HAVE TO APOLOGIZE TO ONE OF THE TAXI DRIVERS AND MAKE YOUR OWN WAY HOME, WHILE I TRY TO FIGURE OUT SOME WAY TO FIX THIS MESS!”

She seemed worried, but relented. She got out of the car (Opening the door this time) and dialled one of the taxi services. Papyrus hunched over, holding his head in his hands. He was going to have to call a tow truck to bring the car home, then he was going to have to either convince the repair shop to come to him or get the car towed again, _then_ he had to worry about how much it would cost to repair the car, and that was _if_ it could be repaired.

In his panicked state, he could only vaguely hear what Undyne was saying. He didn’t hear any yelling, at least.

He didn’t know how much time had passed before he registered the door opening and closing again.

“They’ll, uh... they’ll be here in about 15 minutes.”

He nodded, but gave no other response.

“Look, Papyrus, I’m sorry, okay? It was stupid, and I-”

“STOP.”

Papyrus didn’t raise his head. Didn’t turn to look at her. He needed to say what he was about to say, and if he looked at her and saw that she was upset, he probably wouldn’t go through with it.

“UNDYNE... FRIENDS NEED TO BE HONEST WITH EACH OTHER AND RESPECT EACH OTHER. BUT AFTER TONIGHT, I CAN SEE THAT YOU DON’T HAVE ANY RESPECT FOR ME.”

He was trembling, trying not to raise his voice or be unreasonable, just to say his piece and be done with it.

“THERE ARE TIMES WHEN I FEEL THIS WAY, UNDYNE. THAT YOU DON’T HAVE ANY RESPECT FOR ME. BUT, BECAUSE YOU’RE MY FRIEND, I PUSH THOSE FEELINGS AWAY; I TRUST YOU EVEN WHEN I FEEL LIKE I SHOULDN’T. I ACCEPT SOME OF THE THINGS YOU DO THAT UPSET ME. BUT RIGHT NOW, I CAN’T DO THAT. YOU’VE BEEN LYING TO ME, AND YOU’VE IGNORED THE ONE THING I ASKED OF YOU.”

He braced himself; even after everything, he wanted to believe that he was wrong. That it was just the bad day talking. That maybe he had taken Flowey’s warning too seriously. If she really, truly was his friend, she’d be honest with him now.

“UNDYNE, WHY WAS I NEVER ALLOWED INTO THE ROYAL GUARD? WHAT PART OF ME FAILED TO MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS?”

“P-Papyrus, look-”

He looked her dead in the eye before continuing.

“UNDYNE, STOP DODGING THE QUESTION. IF YOU REALLY VALUE OUR FRIENDSHIP, WHICH I TRULY WANT TO BELIEVE YOU DO, JUST GIVE ME A STRAIGHTFORWARD ANSWER. PLEASE.”

She wilted under his gaze, but he didn’t stop. This was the moment of truth; this was the moment where Undyne could prove that she was a true friend, that Flowey had the wrong idea about his friends, and the moment where he could lay his doubts to rest. All he needed was an honest answer.

“It... there wasn’t anything wrong with _you_ , Papyrus, it’s just... I, uh, wanted people to know you’d earned it, ya know? You wouldn’t want the position if people only thought you got in as my friend, right?”

He sat in silence, despondent. She lied. Flowey was right.

“Papyrus?”

He had begged. Literally _begged_ her to be honest with him. He made it clear that their friendship lay in the balance and she still lied. And it wasn’t even a very believable lie.

“Papyrus, come on...”

He opened the car door and stepped outside. His bones were rattling, and he knew that any attempt to steady them would be utterly futile. He stood outside, standing by the road. Once she realized that he wasn’t going anywhere, she made no attempt to stop him.

He waited for the taxi to arrive and flagged it down. As it pulled over, Undyne got out of the car and walked over to him.

“Papyrus... L-look, maybe we can-”

He didn’t allow her to finish. He got back into his car and resumed his hunched over position. She considered reaching out to him, but there was nothing left to be said. She quietly got into the taxi, which pulled away moments later. Papyrus still didn’t look up.

Once the taxi was out of earshot, he gave up on keeping it together. Even now, he still believed in Undyne; no matter how let down he felt, he didn’t believe her to be a bad person. He knew that she was an amazing person, it was just...

Was their friendship actually as strong as he had thought it to be? Even if he was to let go of tonight, he couldn’t deny that there had been many other similar accidents and foibles throughout their history as friends. Perhaps it was just a case of clashing personalities; he knew that both Undyne and Napstablook were great people in their own right, but they didn’t work very well together.

Was that what Flowey was getting at? That it wasn’t any aspect of Papyrus’ personality that was the problem, but the very core of who he was? Was Undyne just trying to spare him from being told that he was just... not liked? No matter how confident and exuberant he made the effort to be, it meant very little if people simply didn’t like _him_.

Before he could allow himself to be consumed by negativity, he made sure to call a tow truck; he had promised sans that he would be home tonight, and he couldn’t let him down. Once he had called and given his details, they assured him that they would be out to him as soon as possible. In the meantime, all he could really do was wait; he didn’t trust that his thoughts would be very fair or productive. Once he had the opportunity, he would discuss things with Flowey and, at the very least, he’d tell sans what had happened.

As for Undyne... he just didn’t know.

He didn’t have an answer by the time the tow truck arrived, nor when they agreed to tow the car to his house and left him there, nor by the time he had walked home.

As much as he chided sans, he had to admit that perhaps sleeping for longer periods of time wasn’t the worst thing he could do. As Papyrus crawled under the covers and let his consciousness fade away, he resolved to do everything that he could tomorrow to sort things out.

Admittedly, his resolve didn’t feel very strong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this one certainly took a turn! I feel like both Papyrus and Undyne may have come across as somewhat out-of-character, but hopefully both of their reasonings will become clear as the fic progresses. Both Papyrus and Undyne have clear lines of logic in what they do, even if they make mistakes in how they approach certain things. It's hard to explain anyone's thought processes, as a lot of the story involves actually looking at how the characters think and feel, so I'll just leave it there and hopefully see y'all again soon!
> 
> If anyone does take issue with any of the characterizations, I'd be happy to explain my line of reasoning (assuming it doesn't give away too much, of course) for whatever the problem might be!


	7. Midday Meditations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day after his argument with Undyne, Papyrus isn't exactly feeling his best. His routine is out of the question, and when he finally makes his way downstairs for breakfast, sans is already waiting for him.
> 
> If sans is waiting for you after something bad has happened, there's no escaping the discussion that follows.

6:00 AM arrived. Papyrus didn’t wake up. He didn’t hear any of the many subsequent alarms that he had set.

7:00 AM arrived. Papyrus still didn’t wake up. The alarms had long since stopped going off.

Papyrus didn’t stir until noon. When he did, he didn’t get out of bed. A quick glance at the clock confirmed that he had, indeed, had a very long nap, and that the events that had transpired yesterday weren’t some sort of nightmare.

He lay in bed, reflecting on everything that had happened. He was having doubts about everyone around he cared about, his beloved car was severely damaged and everything that he knew about his relationship with Undyne had been called into question. He would have to make a significant effort if he was going to solve any of his problems. No matter how bad things were, he simply couldn’t give up; if he gave up, he knew that sans would soon follow. No matter how bad things got, he could say with absolute certainty that he was always going to be there for his brother.

So, with great difficulty, he got out of bed. He made a feeble attempt to do his stretches, happy enough to have done something, at least, even if not at his usual standard.

He then took a look in the mirror. He looked... dishevelled, to say the least. His clothing was unkempt and his expression betrayed that, despite the longest amount of sleep he had ever received in a single session, he still felt tired. He considered putting his battle body on, but he remembered the loose thread and wanted to avoid any problems surrounding it. He wasn’t quite enthused about wearing anything else, so he settled on continuing to wear his special clothes. He knew that he could have made more of an effort, so he made sure to smooth his clothes down so that they didn’t look _too_ scruffy.

Once he was relatively happy with his appearance, he made his way down the stairs to the kitchen. Surprisingly, sans was already there. Given sans’ usual sleeping habits, Papyrus figured that he really _had_ overslept. Papyrus greeted sans and began to make his way over to the fridge. As he began to rummage around for something that would make a good, filling breakfast (He was too tired to make a proper, nutritious breakfast, but he wasn’t going to miss getting a healthy amount of calcium, either!), sans kept an eye on him. He didn’t pass any comments on the variety of compromises that Papyrus had clearly made.

“rough night, huh?”

Papyrus sighed; he knew that there was no escaping this conversation. Still, he was hoping that perhaps it could have waited until after breakfast, so that he’d be feeling just that little bit more energized. 

“YES, SANS. IT WAS A ROUGH NIGHT.”

“alph gave me the general rundown. you and undyne had a fight, right?”

“...YES.”

sans’ expression didn’t change. Still, it was clear that he was hoping that Papyrus would expand on what had happened by himself. When it was clear that that wasn’t going to happen, he continued to piece it together from what he had been told.

“right. and what was the fight about?”

Honestly? Papyrus didn’t have a straight answer to give. There were several factors involved, but he couldn’t give a clear, exact reason as to what the problem was. He knew, however, that one factor was going to make things difficult, so it was best to get that out of the way first.

“I SPOKE TO FLOWEY YESTERDAY. I’M BRINGING THIS UP BECAUSE I KNOW THAT ALL OF THE BLAME WILL BE PINNED ON HIM, WHICH I DON’T AGREE WITH.”

“welp. can’t deny that. still, can’t make any calls ‘til i’ve actually heard from you what happened.”

Papyrus, a little more at ease knowing that sans would at least hear him out, began his explanation of events. He tried to mention every relevant detail; his difficult morning, Toriel seemingly being upset with him over Asgore and the decorations, Flowey’s conversation with him and, finally, the incident with the car. He did, however, trim down Flowey’s actual conversation with him a little; all he explained there was that Flowey had pointed out some things that were unfair in regards to how he was treated.

Throughout Papyrus’ entire explanation of the events, sans sat and listened. He processed everything that he had been told, before finally speaking up.

“so, uh... it makes sense that you’re upset with undyne about the car and the question dodging. given everything else, though, i’m guessin’ that there’s more to it than that?”

“IT’S... COMPLICATED. IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT THE CAR, IT’S ABOUT THE FACT THAT I PLEADED WITH HER TO BE CAREFUL. IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT DODGING MY QUESTION, IT WAS THAT, EVEN WITH OUR FRIENDSHIP ON THE LINE, SHE REFUSED TO BE HONEST WITH ME. I DO STILL THINK THAT SHE’S AN AMAZING PERSON, BUT... MAYBE WE’RE NOT MEANT TO BE FRIENDS?”

“and that’s where the flower comes in, i’m guessing?”

Papyrus could feel himself becoming irritated; he knew, of course that sans had good reason to be suspicious, and was only looking out for him, but...

“SANS, I’M AWARE THAT YOU DON’T LIKE FLOWEY, BUT IT’S NOT FAIR FOR ALL OF YOU TO BLAME MY PROBLEMS ON HIM.”

“c’mon, bro. i get that you think he’s your friend-”

“HE IS MY FRIEND.”

“...alright, fine, i get that he _is_ your friend. still, the fact that you’re sayin’ ya mightn’t even wanna be friends with undyne any more after one conversation with him is kinda suspicious, isn’t it? ya don’t think that it’s even possible that he’s manipulating you?”

Papyrus knew that one was coming. Whenever this sort of topic was brought up, he’d have to concede defeat because he couldn’t articulate how it was that he actually felt. If one good thing came from Flowey’s conversation, however, it was that Papyrus _finally_ knew why he felt so sure that he wasn’t being manipulated.

“OF COURSE IT’S POSSIBLE, SANS. BUT FLOWEY IS HONEST WITH ME; WHEN HE HAS A PROBLEM WITH ME, HE SAYS SO. WHEN HE THINKS THAT I’M RIGHT ABOUT SOMETHING, _HE SAYS SO_. FLOWEY NEVER TRIES TO SPARE MY FEELINGS OR MAKE ME FEEL BETTER ABOUT SOMETHING THAT HE BELIEVES TO BE TRUE. BUT EVEN IF HE WAS MANIPULATING ME, NONE OF WHAT HE SAID TO ME WAS WRONG!”

“so you’re upset with undyne because she’s not honest with you?”

“...SANS, NO ONE IS HONEST WITH ME.”

There. He said it. It was out there and couldn’t be taken back. He had to see this through to the very end, no matter how it went.

“...i think i know what you’re gettin’ at. still, wanna clarify so i know how to go about this?”

Papyrus was surprised by how... _un_ surprised sans was. Maybe his frustrations had been leaking out into his mannerisms unbeknownst to him?

“NO ONE WILL EVER ADMIT WHEN THEY HAVE A PROBLEM WITH ME. I DON’T KNOW IF YOU ALL THINK THAT I CAN’T HANDLE CRITICISM, OR IF YOU THINK I’M TOO IMMATURE TO BE TOLD WHAT’S GOING ON... BUT IT’S OBVIOUS THAT YOU ALL TREAT ME DIFFERENTLY.”

“yeah, we do. i mean, you’re my little bro, so of course i’ve been trying to keep you safe. been doin’ that since you were a babybones. guess you’re past the point of needing me to do that, huh?”

Papyrus, although touched by the general sentiment, didn’t miss what sans was hinting at. Even if he wasn’t quite his jubilant self, he wasn’t going to let that slide.

“YES, SANS, I THINK I AM. I’M PAST THE POINT OF NEEDING PEOPLE TO PRETEND THAT NOTHING’S WRONG EVEN WHEN IT IS. BUT... I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU KNOW THAT I’M NOT PAST THE POINT OF NEEDING YOU. BECAUSE, EVEN WITH THE TREMENDOUS SPEED OF MY GROWTH, I WILL NEVER REACH SUCH A POINT!”

sans paused for a moment, before his grin widened slightly.

“thanks, papyrus. shoulda realized that someone as great as you doesn’t need protecting.”

“PERHAPS NOT. BUT! THAT DOESN’T MEAN THAT WE CAN’T HAVE EACH OTHER’S BACKS! WE COULD JUST DO SO WITH A LITTLE MORE... OPENNESS?”

“yeah. sounds like a plan.”

While Papyrus knew that he could never expect the whole truth from sans, and knew that sans was still going to keep a mountain of things hidden from him, he was hopeful that, at the very least, that sans wouldn’t hold back the truth from him if he had the right to hear it. That would be enough.

“so, uh... in the interest of openness... i know that that flower is real bad news. still, if you believe in him, i guess i got no right to get in the way of that. so what was it he said that got to you so bad?”

Papyrus briefly considered holding back, but quickly thought better of it; he could hardly ask sans to be honest and immediately lie to his face.

“HE SAID THAT YOU ALL LIE TO ME. HE SAID THAT IF I COULDN’T TRUST ANY OF YOU TO BE HONEST WITH HOW YOU FELT, I COULDN’T TRUST YOU TO BE HONEST ABOUT ANYTHING. HE ALSO POINTED OUT THAT I _WOULD_ BE EASY TO MANIPULATE, BECAUSE PEOPLE DON’T WANT TO KEEP ME AROUND AS MUCH WHEN I’M NOT BEING USEFUL TO THEM.”

“...and what did ya think about that?”

“I COULDN’T SAY THAT HE WAS TOTALLY WRONG. IT CAN BE VERY DIFFICULT TO TRUST PEOPLE WHEN THEY WON’T ADMIT TO WHAT THEY FEEL OR THINK.”

That was where Papyrus stopped, content with his answer. sans, however, didn’t seem to think the answer was sufficient. He waited for a few moments after Papyrus had finished; Papyrus didn’t even realize he was waiting at first, not until sans’ expression switched from a neutral smile to a slightly disappointed looking neutral smile.

“...not plannin’ on addressin’ that last part at all?”

Oh. Right. If he was honest, he hadn’t even thought much about it. Given how often everyone talked about Flowey manipulating him, he figured they thought he was easy to manipulate anyway. As for people only wanting him around when he was useful...

“I MEAN... WHAT IS THERE TO SAY? ISN’T IT TRUE?”

“...the fact that you say that without question is makin’ me worry a lot more, bro.”

“WELL, IT’S LIKE FLOWEY SAID; TORIEL WAS MAD AT ME, UNTIL I HELPED WITH THE DECORATIONS. THAT MORNING, DOGGO CALLED ME ‘PAL’ FOR THE FIRST TIME, WHICH HE ONLY DID BECAUSE I WAS HELPING HIM. IT HAPPENS A LOT; PEOPLE NOTICE ME MORE AND LIKE ME MORE WHEN I’M HELPING THEM, BUT WHEN I CAN’T...”

sans’ eyes darkened. Papyrus hoped that he had avoided the implication that sans also took part in this (because, in all honesty, he knew that Flowey was wrong about sans; he saw how much effort sans put in when it was about him, which was leagues above the effort he’d put into most other things), but it seemed that sans didn’t catch that he wasn’t a part of it.

“SANS... DON’T THINK THAT YOU DO THAT. I KNOW THAT YOU’RE... SECRETIVE, ABOUT MANY THINGS. I DON’T SEE WHY, BUT I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU HAVE PERSONAL BUSINESS THAT’S YOURS ALONE. EVEN IF WE HAVE DIFFICULTIES NOW AND AGAIN, I KNOW THAT IT’S JUST BICKERING AT THE END OF THE DAY. I PROMISE, I KNOW THAT YOU’D NEVER DO THAT TO ME!”

sans’ expression relaxed. Some people said that sans was hard to read (Which even Papyrus could acknowledge to be true at times), but Papyrus knew him, at least in the ways that mattered, and could usually tell what he needed to hear with a pretty solid track record. He knew that sans had his own worries and problems, even if he pretended that he didn’t.

Still, sans was also never one to linger on his own issues, no matter how much you tried to persuade him to. After only a brief moment, sans was back to normal, as if nothing had even been said. Honestly, the fact that he could do that so quickly was worrying; how much _was_ he shouldering alone?

As was often the case in these situations, sans was quick to draw the spotlight away from himself. Papyrus knew that it was more than likely going to stay off of him, too; when Papyrus had a problem, he knew that it the world itself would end before sans would stop trying to help him.

“heh. even when it’s a conversation about your problems, we still end up at mine. pa-tella me about it, eh? gettin’ back on topic... d’ya think that it was all the stuff you’ve been talkin’ about that led to ya losin’ it or do ya think that there was somethin’ about undyne specifically? like, something beyond just what happened?”

Papyrus couldn’t say that he wasn’t worried about sans. Still, he was resigned to reality; when sans didn’t want to talk about his problems, he wouldn’t talk about them. If you pushed, he’d either leave or just hurl puns and deflections until you dropped the issue. If he was going to talk, he’d do it on his own time.

Papyrus hated to leave things like that; he wanted to support sans, and didn’t want him to dismiss his own problems for Papyrus’ sake. However, sans, no matter how much he obfuscated his feelings, could be quite frail emotionally. If he was pushed too far, he could end up isolating himself for an untold amount of time, and Papyrus could count himself lucky if he chose to do that in his bedroom and not one of the several hideouts he had that Papyrus didn’t know of.

Still, no matter how much he wanted to, Papyrus couldn’t deny that he wasn’t exactly in the right mindset to be helping anyone, anyway. Right now, he had to solve his own problem. Once he was back on form, he could really push to make some more progress with sans.

And if he was going to do that, he needed to push himself, too.

“...IF I WAS TO PIN IT TO ONE ISSUE... I DON’T THINK SHE VALUES OUR FRIENDSHIP. AT LEAST, NOT TO THE EXTENT THAT I DO. I COULD ACCEPT THAT THE RECKLESS BEHAVIOUR IS JUST A PART OF WHO SHE IS, BUT... I SAID VERY CLEARLY THAT OUR FRIENDSHIP WAS AT STAKE, SANS. SHE VALUED WHATEVER SHE WAS HIDING FROM ME OVER THAT.”

“and that’s why you’re doubting her now?”

“IT’S NOT THAT SIMPLE, BUT THAT IS THE MOST MAJOR FACTOR AT PLAY. WHY WOULDN’T SHE JUST BE HONEST WITH ME?”

The two sat in silence for a moment.

“well, i got my theories, but it’s best comin’ from her, right?”

He was right, of course. There was no use speculating when Undyne was the only one that could actually answer his question.

“look, there’s no rush on it, alright? take a day or two, get things figured out and, when you’re ready, we can figure out how we’re gonna approach this. sound good?”

“THAT SOUNDS PERFECT, SANS. THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING! AND... I REALLY DO MEAN IT. I TRUST YOU 100%, AND I DO PLAN TO HAVE MORE OF THESE OPEN DISCUSSIONS WHEN THIS IS ALL OVER!”

“sure thing, bro.”

Happy enough with how the conversation had gone, Papyrus prepared and ate his breakfast. If he wasn’t going to be sorting things out with Undyne yet, then there was a very pressing issue that had to be dealt with: his car.

He discussed the issue with sans over breakfast, wondering if there was still a chance that it could be repaired. True to his word, sans didn’t hold back what he thought; he was pretty certain that there was no fixing it, and the engine would have to be replaced. He knew that he could never convince Papyrus to get a new car, so he explained that the mechanics were more than likely going to try to scam him out of more money than would be reasonable.

Papyrus appreciated sans’ honesty, and kept what he had said in mind as he left the room to call them to organize a meeting. He discussed the details with them, explaining everything that had unfolded. They were able to sort a meeting for the next day, which Papyrus was happy about; he’d have an answer soon enough, and would be able to sort something out without having to wait too long.

Meanwhile, just as Papyrus left the room, sans pulled out his own phone. He had a call of his own to make.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was definitely a change of pace; I honestly find sans to be really difficult to write. Not only are his personal motivations really difficult to figure out, especially outside of the context of Undertale as a game, but given the fact that he's perceived in so many different ways by the fandom, it ends up being even more difficult to feel accurate in portraying him.
> 
> Like, originally this chapter didn't really have him do much outside of just guiding Papyrus a little bit. That didn't feel right, so I looked back over it and thought that, in all honesty, his own insecurities probably would seep in, and far more than in-game for the simple reason that it's about Papyrus. No matter what route you take, he makes it extremely clear that Papyrus is his main motivator in life. As such, a problem that Papyrus has is one that he's going to do his best to solve.
> 
> That would be where his own insecurities leak in; he's worried about the fact that Flowey could turn Papyrus against him. He's worried that Papyrus is saying "You're not enough for me. I'm trying to say that the things that you do hurt me." Although Papyrus is definitely good at playing the fool, sans knows, to at least some degree, that Papyrus knows more than he lets on. He just doesn't know how much Papyrus knows.
> 
> Then there's his nihilism; he just doesn't care about reality itself, because, as far as he knows, it's meaningless. He doesn't know how it works; for all he knows, he could wake up tomorrow back in the Underground, no memory of the year passed and nothing to say that it even happened beyond a machine to say that the timeline happened. I don't think Papyrus knows about resets, and obviously that's not something that anyone could feasibly figure out on their own. As such, Papyrus simply thinks that sans has some deep-rooted self-confidence issues, among other problems that he can't fathom. I doubt sans would ever talk about his issues, simply because he's afraid to give away the truth to anyone that doesn't already know it (IE the player in Genocide).
> 
> Tl;dr on all of that: sans is a complex character, and is surprisingly difficult to write, so here's hoping I did him justice. Like, that's barely a portion of what was going through my mind when I was trying to write him.
> 
> As for the chapter itself, I acknowledge that it's a bit messy; it started off fairly simply, and I had it ready to go. Before I publish a chapter, I like to run through it to make sure that it looks right and flows properly, but something about sans didn't feel right. Originally, he just kinda backed Papyrus and offered advice. While it didn't feel wrong, it felt like something was missing. So, I dug a little deeper and thought that, if it was an honest discussion between the two, he'd probably let a few things slip. Then there was Papyrus' reaction; how to keep the fic on track (that is, Papyrus' development and the relationship between himself and Undyne), but it didn't feel quite right for him to just be like "Yeah okay I'll get to sans later".
> 
> I also feel like the focus gets a little bit hazy; what starts as Papyrus opening up ends up being about sans. I didn't really like it ending up that way, but I honestly feel like that's what Papyrus would do; he'd push the problem away and try to help sans. Even though sans has his own issues, he knows to put his foot down and say "For once, let it be about you." In the end, both have their problems, but sans' would take far more dedication to solve, if they even could be, which Papyrus recognizes. In the context of the fic, however, it seems like it's just putting the focus on sans randomly and not actually resolving it.
> 
> In all honesty, I still kinda feel like that's how it comes across; I feel as if I was kinda dismissive of sans' problems. I do think that Papyrus would accept that, if he's really going to help sans, that he needs to get himself in order first. Then, of course, that's wildly outside of the scope of what I have planned for this fic, given how deeply sans' problems run. Having Papyrus so thoroughly resolve to help sans and then just... not, also feels like a cop-out, but that would be a fic all of its own, given how complex it would be. I wasn't gonna have sans be out of character for convenience, though, so even if the chapter was smoother with him in a support role, I opted for the rougher but more 'real' take. Ultimately, I feel like this was gonna be a rough one either way, so I hope that it worked out. 
> 
> Geez, my justifications on writing sans could be their own chapter at this point.
> 
> Still, hopefully y'all enjoyed! I'll see you next time! Feel free to give your own take!
> 
> Also, before I started working on sans, this chapter was so much shorter. I could have had so much easier of a time, and wouldn't have had to go through all of that changing fonts. The one time you want sans to do absolutely nothing, eh?


	8. A Fishy Follow-Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We've seen how the incident affected Papyrus, but how about Undyne?
> 
> Immediately after getting into the taxi and going home, Undyne reacts to the events that unfolded.
> 
> It's not an easy process.

Undyne sat in the taxi in complete silence. She didn’t complain about the slow drive, or the traffic jams, or how the driver kept eyeing her as though she was some kind of shifty thug. All she could think about was how quickly everything had collapsed.

This certainly wasn’t the first time she had upset Papyrus; he was a lot softer than she was, so it was only natural that they’d clash on a few things here and there. But he never, _ever_ lost his temper or raised his voice at her.

And there was how utterly _crushed_ he was when she lied to him again. She’d seen him upset before, sure, but it was never “not able or willing to speak” levels of upset. Plus, it was never directed at her; she was always the one who helped him out of that state, not put him in it!

She thought about it, and tried to be angry with Papyrus; he was blind to being manipulated, it was just a car, he was being too uptight... but none of it really fit. He only asked one thing of her, and she didn’t listen. She couldn’t help but feel like a really lousy friend. If she still _was_ his friend.

Above all other feelings, worry was the one that was gnawing at her the most. What if he _didn’t_ want to be her friend any more? Sure, it’d be easy for her to make new friends, but Papyrus really was one of a kind. Since the day they’d met, he’d never once let her down. She figured at first that he was just sucking up to get a Royal Guard position, but it didn’t take long for her to realize that that was just who he was. He did nice things because he liked to do nice things.

She also knew that he was _really_ lonely. She remembered how his eyes had lit up the first time she had referred to him as a friend, as if that was some kind of monumental achievement. Sure enough, she realized that the only other person that actually even seemed to know him was his brother, who just didn’t have the energy to keep up with Papyrus in a friendly role.

In all honesty, she got that; Papyrus was the first (and only) person that she had ever met that could keep up with her, either. She never had to hold anything back with him; she could unabashedly be herself and not feel like she had to “stop being so rough” or “tone down the volume” or “just chill out”. Sure, she was more well-liked and popular than Papyrus was, but what were the chances of making a new friend that just _got_ her the way he did?

She was interrupted from her thoughts as the taxi pulled in at her house. She wordlessly paid the driver and got out of the car, making her way to the front door. She fished out her keys and tried to unlock the door, but couldn’t unlock the door due to how badly she was shaking. She hadn’t even noticed until now.

She banged on the door, praying that Alphys hadn’t gone to bed yet. Thankfully, she answered the door with a worried look on her face.

“O-ohmygosh, Undyne! You l-look t-terrible! What happened? W-where’s Papyrus?”

“Alphie... I messed up.”

That was all she could manage before she started to cry. Alphys brought her in to the living room and held her, doing her best to encourage her to let it out. Alphys still struggled with this sort of thing; Undyne rarely ever let herself cry, and there were very few that were allowed to see it.

The first was Gerson; he was her _hero_ when she was a kid. The first time she cried in front of anyone was when she had hurt herself trying to use a hammer. He had found her with a badly injured foot and a hammer laying against the wall, which spelled out everything he needed to know. She tried not to cry, because she didn’t want the greatest hero in the Underground to think she was a wimp.

It was Gerson that taught her that you _had_ to cry sometimes. Despite his jolly demeanour, he explained that even he wasn’t happy _all_ the time. It was then that he offered to give her history lessons (seeing as she was too young for him to actually train). She accepted readily, and every week he’d explain different events that had occurred throughout monster history. She didn’t miss that he always explained how he felt for the parts he was involved in, and that there were times, especially during the war, when he did cry. That was the first time that anyone had told her that it was okay to be vulnerable, some times.

The second person was Asgore. It took quite some time before she was willing to admit to him that she had any difficulties; at first, because she wanted to be tougher than him, and couldn’t risk looking weak in any capacity. Eventually, once the two had grown close, she didn’t want to add anything to his workload; he didn’t need to worry about her on top of everything else. She stuck rigidly to that idea, until one of her first bad days as Captain of the Royal Guard.

He knew that she was struggling, and offered to set up some sentry posts around the Underground to ease up her patrolling schedule. She was adamant that she didn’t need any help, but all it took was him telling her that he was worried about her for her to cave. As she cried, she explained that she couldn’t let everyone down, that they couldn’t look up to someone who couldn’t keep it together under stress.

He explained to her that it was okay for her to struggle now and then; even he needed time to rest, and would often delegate certain duties to people he trusted to do the job well. He helped her to set up a more reasonable working schedule, and made plans for meetings to ensure that she wasn’t getting overwhelmed. At first, she felt like he was treating her like a child, but she grew to understand just how much she needed some time to herself that wasn’t consumed by her duties.

The third person was Papyrus. Once they had begun to hang out outside of work, she began to really see what he was like. He was a perfect fighter on paper; he was absurdly powerful, his techniques in battle showed great potential and he followed every order given to him. It wasn’t until their first hangout that she understood why she had doubts about actually allowing him to join the Royal Guard.

As was the norm for Undyne, she didn’t divulge much about her actual interests. As she showed him around her house, she listened to him explain how much he loved puzzles, and how he was trying to be a better cook, and how much he loved his brother. He... really was an open book. He asked about her interests, to which she gave the usual generic responses; work, defending monsterkind etc etc. She was caught off-guard when he asked her about her piano.

He was the first person to ever actually ask about it. She admitted to playing, and he excitedly asked to hear her play some time. It took a few more hangouts before she actually felt comfortable doing so. Once she finished, he applauded and told her that she played really well. She cried then because it made no sense to her; Papyrus seemed to actually like her. Not out of necessary respect or fear, but out of actual interest in her as a person. Not only did that cement their friendship to her, but it also cemented her decision that he was never going to join the Royal Guard; if any human came through, she knew that there was no way Papyrus could kill them. And there was no way that she’d ever let ANYONE hurt him.

That left Alphys. She knew that Alphys had the exact same problem that she did; she was afraid to let people in. Between the two, Alphys was the first one to cry: they were hanging out, watching TV together. Once Mettaton appeared on the TV, Alphys started to become uncomfortable. It wasn’t long after until she started to cry. She didn’t explain what had upset her so much, but Undyne figured she could explain whenever she was ready.

After that incident, the two had become much closer. Undyne couldn’t even remember what the first thing she cried to Alphys had been about; what she remembered most vividly was how _right_ it felt. There were no expectations to be lived up to, she could be completely open about how she felt because she knew Alphys would understand, and she knew that Alphys wouldn’t judge her. Even if she felt as though she had done something awful, she could trust Alphys to stay.

Undyne had no idea how long they had been sitting there before the tears subsided. She still felt a lump in her throat, but she felt capable of forming full sentences, which was enough for now. She explained everything that had happened, from the argument to the car being damaged to Papyrus’ refusal to even look at her.

“...W-wow, uh... y-yeah, that does seem... p-pretty bad. So... w-where does that l-leave things? Between you guys, I mean.”

Undyne wasn’t sure. She didn’t think Papyrus would hold a grudge, but...

“I don’t know. I’ve never seen him like that before... Alphie, what if he hates me for this?”

It wasn’t until she had actually said it out loud that the panic had begun to set in. What if he _did_ hate her for this? Her relationship with her best friend would be ruined, then there was the impact that it would have on sans and Alphys’ friendship, not to mention social gatherings that the two of them would be expected to attend...

“O-okay, okay, just try to calm down, Undyne. Let’s look at this... logically! So, um... first off, Papyrus d-doesn’t hate anybody, right? He still likes... F-Flowey, after all. He doesn’t have a-any enemies, so what are the chances of you b-being the first? P-plus, he cares about you, a lot. I d-don’t think he’d give up your friendship, e-even if it might be... um, st-strained for a while.”

Undyne wasn’t sure, but she had to admit that Alphys was making sense. Even so, the image of him refusing to so much as acknowledge her was haunting her.

“Alphie... you didn’t see how he reacted. He wouldn’t talk to me, wouldn’t even _look_ at me! Like, he just... unpersoned me right on the spot!”

“W-well... why _did_ you l-lie to him, Undyne? I... c-can’t help but think he k- kinda has a point in saying that there’s r-really no reason to lie about it at th-this point.”

“Of course there’s a reason! The whole reason we ended up being friends was because of how much he wanted to join the Royal Guard! What’s he gonna think if he realizes that that was never gonna happen? He’s gonna think I only kept him around as free labour! Or even worse, he’s gonna think I’m just some evil creep that just liked dangling his hope in front of him!”

That was the crux of the matter; their entire friendship was built on a lie. Sure, they had become friends independently of that lie, but... what if Papyrus didn’t see it that way?

“NGAH! I can’t handle this! I’m gonna march over there RIGHT NOW and I’m gonna tell him EVERYTHING!”

“Undyne, w-wait!”

Alphys, as she often did, stood up as the voice of reason for Undyne. As determined as she was to resolve things, Undyne figured that she should at least hear her out.

“L-look, it’s g-great that you want to r-resolve this, but... d-don’t be too h-hasty, okay?”

“Alphie, it’s not about being hasty, it’s about showing him that I’m sorry!”

“Y-yeah, but... it’s p-pretty late? He m-mightn’t appreciate you blasting in at this hour...”

Okay. She had a point. Even if Papyrus probably wasn’t asleep, she figured that no one would be happy about someone barging in to their house late at night, especially if they had a roommate that slept all the time and neighbours that could file complaints.

“...Got me there. Alright, I’ll go first thing in the morning, then!”

Alphys still didn’t seem too enthusiastic. She seemed to think something over before looking sadly at Undyne.

“...Undyne... sometimes, if someone... h-hurts you... you n-need to take time to process that. T-trust me, I c-can say that from experience. M-maybe just give it some time and... l-let him make the first move? I know it’s probably n-not what you w-want to hear, but... it might be best if you j-just gave him a little space?”

Even if she felt entirely deflated, Undyne knew that Alphys was right. She could brute force a lot of things, but this wasn’t one of them. She gave a resigned sigh and let Alphys pull her into another hug. They went up to bed and Undyne hoped she could drift off into something of a peaceful sleep. She noticed Alphys sending someone a text, but wasn’t really concerned with checking who it was.

What little sleep she did get that night was anything but peaceful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN ENTIRE CHAPTER WITHOUT HAVING TO EDIT FONTS!!!
> 
> So, decided to take a bit of a detour here; while the fic is mostly focused on Papyrus, I think it's important that we understand what Undyne thinks and feels. Due to the focus on Papyrus and his perspective, we don't get too much of an insight on Undyne and her motivations, so she looks a lot worse because there's no real way to explain what she's thinking.
> 
> This won't be the only Undyne chapter, but the focus will remain on Papyrus. The fic is mainly exploring the relationship between the two, so I feel it's important to ensure that her voice is heard too!
> 
> Also, I'll just clarify that Alphys' text at the end is her explaining the situation to sans. Seeing as we've yet to see who sans was texting in the previous chapter, I figured that I should make it clear that Alphys' text isn't a set up for anything coming up.


	9. A Surprising Supporter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Papyrus to sort things with the mechanics... a task that he has no idea how to handle.
> 
> Thankfully, an unexpected visitor stops by and offers to help!

Today was the day that Papyrus was going to the repair shop to discuss the damages to his car. Following sans’ advice, he tried his best to figure out what prices he should be paying, and how to avoid being misled, but it was all much more complicated than he could really follow.

Just as he was getting ready to leave, he heard a knock at his door. He wasn’t expecting anyone, and he didn’t recognize the knock as belonging to Undyne or Alphys. He went down the stairs to answer the door, and was greeted by none other than...

“...YOUR MAJESTY?”

Asgore smiled at him.

“Howdy, Papyrus! May I come in?”

Papyrus was a little uncertain; he did have a meeting to get to, and he didn’t want to risk being late. Still, he could hardly say no, and only hoped that Asgore wouldn’t mind if he had to cut the visit short, should the need arise.

“OF COURSE, YOUR MAJESTY.”

“Please, Papyrus, call me ‘Asgore’. I believe that we’ve known each other long enough to drop the formalities!”

With that request, Asgore stooped below the door frame and made his way into the house. Papyrus invited him into the living room, where he sat on the couch and Papyrus sat nearby in sans’ recliner.

“WHAT BRINGS YOU BY, YOUR- I MEAN, ASGORE?”

“Well, Papyrus, I was told that you were having issues with your car. Would you like some accompaniment for your meeting with the mechanics? I’m sure I don’t have to explain my background in diplomacy!”

As Asgore chuckled at his joke, Papyrus considered the proposal.

“IT’S NOT THAT I DON’T APPRECIATE THE OFFER, ASGORE, BUT SURELY YOU’RE BUSY WITH YOUR KINGLY DUTIES?”

Asgore simply gave him a warm smile. He put a hand on Papyrus’ shoulder and looked him in the eyes as he spoke.

“Papyrus, even though we have not interacted too closely, I would like to think of us as friends. Surely I need no more reason than that to want to help?”

“WELL... HOW COULD I TURN DOWN SUCH AN OFFER? THANK YOU VERY MUCH, ASGORE! BUT... HOW DID YOU EVEN KNOW I WAS HAVING TROUBLE IN THE FIRST PLACE, LET ALONE THAT I WAS MEETING WITH THE MECHANICS TODAY, AT THIS TIME?”

“I received a call from your brother, actually. He explained what was going on and asked if I would be willing to help you. And I’d be more than happy to be of assistance, should you want me there!”

That was odd. Papyrus didn’t have anything against Asgore (He was quite an endearing fellow, actually), but it seemed odd that sans would call him of all people. Still, he couldn’t turn down an offer of help from a friend!

“IN THAT CASE, WE’D BEST MAKE HASTE! I’LL HAVE TO GET THE CAR TOWED, AND WITH ANY LUCK, THEY’LL BE ABLE TO MAKE THE MEETING IN REASONABLE TIME!”

“Actually, Papyrus, I could tow your car! I’d just have to hook you up to my truck and we’d be good to go! We can make your meeting with time to spare.”

Delighted, Papyrus helped Asgore to get things in motion. Well, not really, as Asgore needed very little help due to his own sheer strength, but Papyrus did what he could to be of assistance! It wasn’t long before the two were on the road. They had reached the repair shop in good time, so Asgore asked Papyrus if they could wait and discuss what had actually happened to his car. Papyrus, figuring that Asgore knew a lot more than he did, agreed.

Asgore was very thorough, but didn’t make anything too complex for Papyrus to understand. Just before it was time to head in, they had come to the conclusion that Asgore would help with the negotiations, while Papyrus would explain any relevant details. With their plan in motion, they made their way inside.

They met with a pair of mechanics, who had barely even glanced at the engine before telling them that it would need to be replaced. They didn’t even examine it; their examination was solely to make sure that a new engine _could_ be fitted in, given how badly damaged the engine actually was. Although Papyrus didn’t understand everything, he got the gist; whatever had been done to the engine, certain parts of it had been ripped out or moved into positions that could make it difficult to fit replacement parts in properly. Thankfully, they explained that the job was doable, but would be no easy feat.

That was when they proposed their price to replace the engine. Papyrus nearly fell there and then upon hearing it. There was no way he could feasibly afford to pay them unless he took out a major loan, and even at that, the amount of time it would take to pay the loan back would interfere with so many of his plans for the future!

That was where Asgore took over; though Papyrus knew he was more than capable of being firm when necessary, this was his first time seeing it in person. Asgore also made it clear that he was surprisingly knowledgeable on the inner workings of cars. It didn’t take long for the price to hit a much more reasonable point, which Papyrus was more than willing to pay. At that point, even if his savings would take a major blow, he wouldn’t have to take out a loan! The mechanics explained that the car would be ready in three days, good as new.

Given how things had been going for him lately, he could have cried upon hearing such good news. ‘Could have’ being somewhat of a misrepresentation; despite denying it, there were indeed tears slipping through his eye sockets.

As Asgore and Papyrus left the repair shop, Papyrus was feeling quite content. Although it was still quite a sum, Asgore had managed to talk them down to just over half of the original price estimate. Asgore, glad to see that Papyrus’ situation had been resolved in a manner that he was happy with, offered to drive the skeleton home.

“WELL... ACTUALLY, ASGORE... AS YOU SAID BEFORE, WE HAVEN’T REALLY DONE MUCH AS FRIENDS. IF YOU’RE NOT BUSY, WE COULD DO SOMETHING NOW, IF YOU’D LIKE?”

Asgore was somewhat taken aback; it wasn’t often that anyone ever asked to spend time with him in a non-official capacity, and he could count on one hand the number of people that did so. Really, Gerson, Undyne and Alphys were the only people that he got to spend much time with, and, while he highly valued their friendship, he did wonder every so often how keen they would have been to befriend him had he not been their boss or leader.

Although surprised by the skeleton’s offer, Asgore did not hesitate to accept. He looked to Papyrus with a kind smile.

“That sounds wonderful, Papyrus. Did you have anything in mind?”

Papyrus didn’t have anything in mind, actually. He didn’t know Asgore’s interests too well; he knew that Asgore liked gardening, but that didn’t really seem like a “first hangout” kind of activity. Given his relative inexperience with hanging out with other people, not to mention the fact that Asgore’s disposition was quite different to that of the few friends that Papyrus _did_ have, he figured he’d have to rely on old classics.

“WELL... A GOOD MEAL IS ALWAYS A GOOD WAY TO BRING PEOPLE CLOSER!”

“An excellent idea, Papyrus. Is there anywhere in particular you’d like to go?”

Papyrus had his ideas, but he decided to flip the decision back to Asgore. Papyrus reasoned that, when making decisions with friends, both parties should get to participate, and shouldn’t feel pressured to do any one thing. He certainly didn’t want to make Asgore feel that way, at any rate!

“Well... I suppose I, personally, wouldn’t have fast food as a first option; grease never sits too well with me. There is a lovely café I know of that makes the most exquisite soup, if you’d like to try there?”

Delighted by Asgore’s impeccable tastes, Papyrus was happy to agree with his suggestion. The two hopped into Asgore’s truck and began their drive to the café Asgore was talking about. On the way, they happily talked about this and that, surprised by how much they had in common.

For one, Asgore also had aspirations in the culinary world! He claimed to have great difficulty in most meals, be it cooking, baking, or anything else. Though Papyrus had little experience with baking (not that Asgore minded; he didn’t seem to want to linger on the idea of baking, anyway), he figured that he could help Asgore with learning how to cook! The two discussed recipes for pasta, which Papyrus explained would be a great starting point. Although Asgore didn’t seem too confident, Papyrus assured him that, some day soon, he would teach him how to become not just king of the monsters, but also king of his kitchen!

As much as Papyrus was enjoying himself, however, he couldn’t help but feel just a touch saddened as he thought of someone else that food had brought him closer to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for another scene with Asgore! This chapter is a little bit short (I considered extending it a little, but in all honesty, it is what it is, and most of what I could add would either be irrelevant or superfluous, so I just accepted it), but the ones following will have more going on in them!
> 
> I'm pulling a little from Deltarune with his characterization here; I don't know if Asgore in Undertale would own a truck or have much knowledge on them, but I figure that it's a solid enough source to work with! I'll say that, as far as everyone goes, I tend to stick with what we know from Undertale itself, but there are certain elements from Deltarune that I think either fit into canon or work well enough in canon, so I work with that!
> 
> (Also, it may surprise you to know, but the vague price references and lack of focus on the repair shop scene are subtle hints that I know absolutely nothing about cars, and wasn't confident in what I was able to Google)


	10. Gossiping Guests

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Undyne tries to pass the time while hoping for Papyrus to get into contact with her.
> 
> In the meantime, Alphys has some guests that make concentrating a very difficult affair.

Undyne didn’t function too well when she didn’t get enough sleep. She flopped out of bed feeling stiff as a board, muscles aching as she trudged down the stairs to make her morning coffee. Alphys was waiting for her in the kitchen, typing away on her laptop. When she realized that Undyne was on her way down, she quickly saved her work before closing the laptop and starting to make a pot of coffee.

“H-hey! S-sorry I didn’t wake you... I kinda figured you, uh... hadn’t gotten much sleep? A-and I figured that you needed it?”

Undyne sighed, but gave Alphys a quick peck on the cheek to show that she appreciated the gesture all the same. She tried to get rid of the ache in her shoulders, to no avail.

“Thanks, Alphie. Have you been up for long?”

“I, um... I got up at 10AM?”

Normally, Undyne would have encouraged Alphys to get up a little earlier. Things weren’t normal, though, so her primary concern was what time she had gotten up at. She checked the time on her phone and...

“...2PM? Ugggghhhh.”

She rested her head on the counter, silently wishing for the coffee to just hurry up and be ready. The wish didn’t last long, as a wave of guilt swept over her; she had already ruined things with Papyrus, she wasn’t going to ruin things with Alphys over a pot of coffee.

Once the coffee was ready, she downed a cup in one gulp, to Alphys’ horror. She poured a second, but, for Alphys’ sake, decided to drink it at a vaguely reasonable pace.

“S-so, Undyne... um, you know that I’m on a day off... a-and, um... I thought you were g-gonna be job hunting today...”

Ah, right. She was supposed to be either finding a job or getting herself some formal training. Given how things had been, she had completely forgotten.

“N-not that I w-want to push you! I-in fact, I d-don’t actually mind, it’s not like we’re st-struggling or anything... but, um... I k-kinda figured you w-weren’t gonna be here, so, I, uh...”

Alphys’ long-winded rambling was cut short by a knock at the door. She apologized to Undyne and went to answer, Undyne didn’t have to wonder for too long who was there, as she had a pretty good idea who had come over as soon as the door opened.

“ALPHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYSSSSSSS!!! WE HAVEN’T TALKED IN, LIKE, A BILLION FOREVERS!”

“THAT’S, LIKE, TOTALLY TOO MANY FOREVERS!”

“Ah, h-hey guys! C-come in!”

Alphys led the two to the living room as quickly as she could, flashing an apologetic smile to Undyne as she walked by. Her two friends followed enthusiastically, waving frantically to Undyne as they passed by. So as not to be rude, she gave a weak wave back, but made no attempt to follow or be part of the conversation.

Not that she needed to; though Alphys was her usual somewhat timid self, her friends could probably be heard by their neighbours. After a few minutes of introductions and catching up, Alphys excused herself to the kitchen for a moment to check on Undyne.

“S-sorry, I know Bratty and Catty might be a bit... um, m-much for you right now. I-if you want to head back to bed or head out, m-maybe...?”

She appreciated Alphys’ concern, and was very tempted to take her up on heading back to bed, but she knew that her actual options were rather limited. She could either go outside (Which she really wasn’t feeling up to), go back to bed (which meant an entire day would be wasted) or try to be productive around the house while Alphys had fun with her friends.

“Nah, it’s fine. Mind if I borrow your laptop for a bit? Might see if there are any jobs around online or something.”

Alphys’s face went red as she scrambled for her laptop, the screen of which she kept squarely away from Undyne’s view.

“S-sure! Just let me, um, close these... w-work documents.”

Her frantic clicking and determination to prevent Undyne from seeing the screen clued her in that it probably wasn’t just work documents she had open. Not that Undyne minded; she’d told Alphys a million times that she wasn’t bothered by any of the stuff that she read or wrote in her downtime. Alphys still insisted on keeping it to herself, though; even though she trusted Undyne, she’d said that it was “embarrassing and personal”, which was enough for Undyne not to bring it up again.

That didn’t stop her from chuckling to herself as she took the laptop back from Alphys.

“Thanks, babe.”

A still flustered Alphys meekly gave her a thumbs up and darted back to the living room. True to her word, Undyne went online to look for job listings as soon as Alphys had left the room. After a few hours of searching, she gave up; it turned out that “Former Captain of the Royal Guard” didn’t actually qualify you for much else, due to how differently set up human laws and police enforcement were.

On that note, she drifted from job searching to trying to figure out what qualifications were necessary to become a police officer. Even if she still had her doubts (There was yet to be a monster accepted into human law enforcement, and she knew that being the first would come with its own host of problems), she supposed that there was no harm in taking a few notes.

At that point, she didn’t feel like there was much else that she could feasibly do. Taking a well-earned break, she took a look on the Undernet. She sifted through a series of posts where someone she didn’t know (As soon as she had been appointed as Captain of the Royal Guard, she had followed everyone in Waterfall, just to be safe) asked an egg whether it or the chicken came first. The most recent post on the issue was “eg not say ANYTHING!!! tem maek eg MAD? :( :(”. She didn’t know what she had been expecting, but she was still frustrated after finally passing the last post.

She saved Gerson’s weekly historical post, this one detailing the construction of Home; it had taken ages before she finally got him to agree to start posting online, and he only agreed to do so if she promised to read his posts. She wasn’t quite up for reading it yet, given how thorough he could be, so once she had it bookmarked she continued scrolling, before reaching a post from Asgore.

She clicked in, and was met with a photo of Asgore and... Papyrus. The two were in a café, having lunch together. In lieu of a description, he had merely written “#friends # papyrus #jackies #soup #goodvibes #epic”. Asgore’s inability to use social media properly never failed to get a smile from her. Although she had a million and one questions as to what led to that photo being taken, she supposed it wasn’t really the time to ask.

Her thumb hovered over the like button momentarily, before she rescinded it. Maybe right now wasn’t the best time to be liking posts involving Papyrus.

That was the point where she decided that she’d had enough social media for today, and closed the laptop. She rested her head on the counter once more, with only the sounds of Alphys’ friends’ overenthusiastic gossiping to keep her company. She didn’t exactly pay attention, but as she simply let her head rest for a minute, she caught some of the conversation topics.

“Okay, so, like, I was in work the other day, right? Then this suuuuuper annoying jerk, like, barges in and starts being annoying.”

“The one who always leaves that chalky hair gel around?”

“Catty, that’s NOT hair gel. He, like, sneezes into his hands and it mixes with the food dust on ‘em.”

“EWWWWW! That’s so GROSS!”

Fittingly enough, Undyne was pretty sure she could hear Alphys practically retching at that information.

“So, yeah, that day already sucked ‘cuz I’d had a huge argument with this sea horse guy ‘cuz we didn’t have the protein powder he wanted and I’m like ‘it’s a supermarket, dude, what am I supposed to do?’, and then he starts flexing and like he might have been flirting but I don’t even know, he was flexing, like, more than he talked”

“I bet he wasn’t even flirting, I bet he thought you had some protein powder under the counter and, like, you’d TOTALLY give him some if you thought he was hot!”

“A-actually, I’m pretty s-sure I know who you’re t-talking about... Catty might n-not be too far off...”

Undyne heard the three of them laughing; it was always great to hear Alphys laughing, even if the other two were loud enough to drown most of it out.

“But yeah, the day, like, super sucks, then I have to deal with that grody guy. But get this, right? Next in comes this guy. He’s like, super tall and super nice. So I’m taking, like, forever to scan his stuff because I’m still wicked mad about the nasty guy and I’m like ‘sorry dude, today sucks’ and I’m expecting an earful, right?”

“Right? Not right!!! You should, like, be entitled to sick leave whenever that guy is in the store.”

“I-I don’t think it’d b-be fair to be mad if it wasn’t TOO l-long a wait...”

Undyne wasn’t too sure what she’d have said; sure, she’d never go out of her way to be rude to a cashier, but if they were just sitting there being mad at somebody...

She didn’t get to think much further on it; Alphys’ friends hardly allowed themselves to take a breath when they were telling stories, only pausing for the other to interject in most cases.

“But yeah, he’s all ‘yeah, my day is sucking too, but you’re, like, super cool and junk!’ and he doesn’t get mad or anything!”

“NO WAYYY!!! So he was, like, TOTALLY into you, right?”

“C-Catty! L-let’s not jump to any c-conclusions! ...Was he, though?”

Undyne could hear Catty’s laughter and even Alphys wasn’t entirely keeping it together; as often as she had to be the voice of reason, she did sometimes get sucked in and laugh along with them. Bratty seemed embarrassed when she spoke up again.

“I-I dunno! But like, I told him he was super nice and that that day wasn’t gonna be as suckish as it felt like, and then he said he thought the same and that my service was, like, EXCELLENT!”

“AAAHHHH!!! Please please PLEASE tell me you put your phone number on his receipt!!!”

“Y-Yeah Bratty! D-don’t leave us h-hanging!”

Undyne may have been a rut, but even at that point, she was starting to laugh to herself. Hearing Alphys, of all people, egging someone on for gossip was absurd. Even if Bratty and Catty weren’t her favourite people, she loved the side of Alphys that they brought out.

“UGGGHHH! I didn’t even think of it! Even if I did, though, my manager said I’m, like, not allowed to write anything on receipts any more, just ‘cause I told ONE GUY that his name was dumb and I didn’t care if he was mad that I couldn’t remember it! I super hope the cool guy stops by again soon. Like, I’m not even really into skeletons, but he actually was kinda hot...”

“OMG BRATTY!!! You’ve GOTTA meet this guy again!!!”

At that point, Undyne’s laughter stopped, as did Alphys’. Partially because of the sad realization that no, the person in question was more than likely not flirting with her, and partially because there was only one tall skeleton out there that it could have been.

So, he was already having a bad day and didn’t tell anyone? A lot had happened that day, but he never even brought up that anything was wrong. She knew that he usually took a lot of coaxing just to admit something was wrong, but... did he seriously open up to the freak that tried to steal their souls instead of her? Apparently he was quicker to talk to a cashier that he barely knew than to her or any of their friends! If that was how it was, then... maybe they did have some serious issues to talk about.

She heard the conversation drift over to Catty’s new interest in Burgerpants, due to his newfound role in Mettaton’s live shows giving him a substantial payrise, and tuned out completely. She headed back upstairs to bed, deciding that she’d had enough for today.

She really hoped that Papyrus would contact her again soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly I love Bratty and Catty. In fact, the shopkeepers in general are super underrated; they all have so much life and character to them, yet they never get too much attention. You've probably figured at this point that I adore Gerson, but these two are also lots of fun.
> 
> Given how radically different the two of them are to Alphys, I think that the idea of them having a sisterly relationship with her is actually super interesting; was she just a mentor figure? Was she similar to them but outgrew the behaviour? Lots of questions, but no matter how it was, I like to imagine that she inspires them to be serious when it matters, and they inspire her to just have fun now and again.
> 
> I can't imagine that Undyne gets along too well with them, though. She tries her best for Alphys but, given what's going on, there's absolutely no way she could tolerate them for too long. Even when they're not in the same room.


	11. Café Companionship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus and Asgore take their trip to the café!
> 
> The discussions can't stay light-hearted for too long...

As Papyrus followed Asgore into the café, he could feel his enthusiasm growing almost immediately. While it didn’t quite carry the same atmosphere that Grillby’s did, it _also_ didn’t carry the putrid smell of grease, nor the hustle-and-bustle that made it very difficult not to bump into people as you looked for a seat.

He and Asgore sat down to look at the menu, though Asgore put his down fairly quickly.

“I’ve been here a few times, the chicken and sweetcorn soup has quickly grown into a favourite of mine!”

Papyrus considered it, but decided that the creamy vegetable soup was more his style. Once they had settled on drinks (Tea, of course), Asgore went up to place their orders. Once he had returned, he started the conversation anew.

“So, Papyrus, if I may ask, why was it so important that you fix your car, rather than getting it repaired? Even with the renegotiated price, it might have been cheaper to simply purchase a new one.”

Papyrus thought for a moment; it wasn’t that he didn’t have the answer ready, but he needed to articulate it in a way that he hoped Asgore would understand.

“WELL... I ALWAYS WANTED A CAR JUST LIKE THAT ONE. WHEN I MANAGED TO GET IT, I WAS ECSTATIC! BUT... IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT THE MODEL OF THE CAR.”

Asgore nodded and motioned him to continue.

“I... I MEAN NO DISRESPECT TO YOU, BUT I ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT ACTUALLY REACHING THE SURFACE WAS... WISHFUL THINKING. I FIGURED THAT, RATHER THAN HOPING FOR SOMETHING THAT MIGHT NEVER COME, IT WAS BETTER TO TRY TO BE HAPPY WITH WHAT I HAD.”

Asgore offered a sad smile.

“Words of wisdom, Papyrus. I wish I could have heard them before... perhaps many tragedies could have been prevented.”

“PERHAPS. HOWEVER, THINGS HAPPENED THE WAY THEY DID, AND NOTHING CAN CHANGE THAT! I KNOW, AS DO MANY OTHERS, THAT YOU HAD VERY LITTLE CHOICE IN THE MATTER. SO, IF I CAN FORGIVE YOU, AND THEY CAN FORGIVE YOU, IT WOULD BE UNDEMOCRATIC OF YOU NOT TO FORGIVE YOURSELF!”

Asgore chuckled. He did not offer much in the way of an answer on that, which Papyrus had expected; he knew that Asgore had a long way to go before he could even move on from the past, let alone forgive himself for it.

“But let’s not get carried away. You were telling me about the car?”

“AH, RIGHT! WELL, WHILE I TRIED NOT TO THINK ABOUT REACHING THE SURFACE TOO MUCH... I DID HAVE ONE DREAM IF I EVER GOT THERE. AND THAT DREAM WAS TO DRIVE A CAR JUST LIKE MY ONE ALONG THE HIGHWAY. ONCE WE REACHED THE SURFACE, I HAD THE CHANCE TO ACTUALLY DO THAT...”

He paused for a moment; although he meant every word that he was saying, he didn’t feel like he was conveying exactly what was so special about that car.

“...BUT IT WAS MORE THAN JUST THE FREEDOM THAT MATTERED. IT WAS THAT TINY PIECE OF HOPE, THE ONE THING I WANTED THAT I BELIEVED WAS IMPOSSIBLE. IT WAS IN THAT CAR THAT I ACHIEVED THE IMPOSSIBLE; I ALWAYS TRY TO BELIEVE THAT NOTHING IS TRULY IMPOSSIBLE IF YOU REALLY WANT IT, AND THAT CAR IS PROOF THAT THAT BELIEF HAS MERIT. SURE, I COULD HAVE ANY CAR, BUT THAT WAS THE CAR THAT I DROVE ALONG THE HIGHWAY, THAT LOOKS JUST LIKE THE ONE I HAD IN MY HEAD...”

He looked to Asgore, hoping that he had explained how much that car meant to him. Thankfully, the king seemed to follow, as no confusion was apparent from his expression.

“It’s no wonder that the incident was so distressing, Papyrus. Your car obviously means a great deal to you, and symbolizes a great deal more. It must be a great relief to know that it will be restored, even if it comes at a rather hefty cost.”

“I MUST ADMIT, THE COST WILL BE AN ISSUE. HOWEVER, IT’S NOT AN ISSUE THAT I CANNOT OVERCOME! ESPECIALLY WITH YOUR HELP; I WOULD HAVE BEEN IN MUCH DEEPER TROUBLE HAD YOU NOT HELPED ME TO REACH A MORE REASONABLE PRICE!”

Before Asgore could assure Papyrus that it was no trouble, their soup arrived. Before eating, however, Asgore insisted that they take a selfie together. He claimed that he was trying to show everyone, human and monster alike, that he was a normal person, just like anyone else. Papyrus thought it seemed like a great idea, and happily posed for the selfie.

Asgore added as many tags as he could think of, but still felt as though something was missing.

“PERHAPS ‘GOOD VIBES’? THAT WOULD SIGNAL THAT WE’RE HAVING A NICE, PEACEFUL TIME, AND WOULD SHOW THAT YOU CARE ABOUT BEING POSITIVE!”

“Ah, a marvellous idea, Papyrus! Hmm... would ‘epic’ be too much? I hear that young people use the term when they find something particularly enjoyable.”

“WELL, I WOULD SAY THAT TODAY HAS BEEN PARTICULARLY ENJOYABLE, SO, IN THAT CASE, ‘EPIC’ SEEMS VERY FITTING!”

Asgore smiled, before adding the last tag and posting his status.

The two then began to dig in to their soup. Just as Asgore had said, the soup was amazing. Papyrus was shocked, and the two made quick work of their meals.

Once Papyrus had finished, however, his mind once again wandered to a certain someone that he would have enjoyed having along. He felt a light wave of melancholy wash over him as he wondered if she had seen their status.

His change in demeanour did not go unnoticed. Asgore, still sipping at his tea, looked to Papyrus, concern evident on his face.

“Is everything alright, Papyrus? You seem... troubled.”

He debated on whether or not he should tell Asgore, especially since Asgore had gone to the trouble of helping him so much already. Still... he had spent so much time lately being upset that people had hidden their feelings from him. Would it be fair for him to think that way, only to turn around and lie about _his_ feelings to a friend?

“I... DON’T SUPPOSE THAT YOU’VE HEARD ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN MYSELF AND UNDYNE?”

“Ah. Well, I know that she was responsible for the damage to your car. Did something else happen?”

Papyrus gave Asgore a quick rundown of the argument that they had had. Having spoken to sans about the issue already, it was much easier for him to explain to Asgore why the incident had been so painful.

“I see. Well, I certainly cannot deny that Undyne can be... ah, stubborn. Still, Papyrus, do you really believe that the truth must always be given, even if the result can be more problematic than if it was not?”

Papyrus certainly hadn’t expected that. Was the king himself telling Papyrus that the truth wasn’t as important as he believed it to be?

“I... I DON’T UNDERSTAND! SURELY IT’S OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE TO STRIVE TO BE AS TRUTHFUL AS ONE CAN BE?”

A look of despair overcame Asgore. He seemed to have several things run through his mind, overwhelming him. Once he had organized his thoughts, he took a deep breath and spoke to Papyrus, his usual jolly tone replaced by one much more serious.

“Papyrus, how well-versed are you in the history of the Human-Monster War?”

“UM... NOT VERY, TO BE HONEST. ALL I COULD SAY WITH ANY CERTAINTY WAS THAT MR. GERSON WAS THERE, AND THAT THE HUMANS WON.”

“...I see. Well, what I’m about to describe to you refers more to the second period; when the war was reignited during our time in the Underground.”

Papyrus didn’t even know that the war had ever stopped. As far as he knew, the war began before monsters were sealed away, and ended when Frisk freed them. He didn’t mention any of this, of course; what mattered was what Asgore was telling him.

“As I’m sure you know, Toriel and I used to be a couple; she was the queen of the Underground, and ruled with me. We had a son together, his name was Asriel.”

For some vague reason, that name sounded familiar to Papyrus.

“Though we had long since accepted that we would be confined to the Underground, a miracle eventual came to us; a human fell in, through the very same hole that Frisk did. Their name was Chara. Asriel brought them home to us and... well, we adopted them. Chara... had great difficulties. It was such a long time before they were willing to trust anyone other than Asriel. Yet they were still a member of our family. Even if things were difficult for a while, they adjusted, and grew to love us, as we loved them.”

Papyrus was shocked, but didn’t comment. He wouldn’t dare interrupt such a personal story.

“One day, Chara fell gravely ill. Though we held on so dearly to our hope... they passed away. They had made one last wish: to see the golden flowers in their home town once more. While it seemed as though their wish would go unfulfilled, Asriel...”

Asgore paused, collecting himself. Papyrus tried his best to be reassuring, reaching over to pat his shoulder and offer an encouraging smile. Asgore smiled in return, taking another deep breath before continuing.

“Asriel absorbed Chara’s soul, and the two returned to Chara’s home town to lay Chara to rest among the golden flowers. But when they got there... the humans living in the village assumed that Asriel had killed Chara himself. They retaliated by... by killing Asriel. All for laying his sibling to rest. Asriel managed to make his way home, before he passed on.”

Asgore looked deeply disturbed by the memory. Even with all of the emotions that were on display, Papyrus could tell that they were barely even the beginning, and that Asgore had buried away so much more. How could one not, with a situation so tragic?

“I was... words couldn’t begin to describe my fury, Papyrus. Not only was my son murdered so cruelly for such a selfless act, but Chara’s grave was desecrated, their brother having been murdered in what was supposed to be a peaceful resting place!”

Papyrus said nothing. He knew that, for all of the troubles he had, he could never understand what Asgore had been feeling at the time, or even what he was feeling as he described it. All Papyrus could do was listen.

“And so, I went ahead and told the truth; I told my people that Asriel, their symbol of hope and prosperity, and Chara, their symbol of peace with humanity, were both dead. That Asriel had been murdered for his act of kindness. That was when I reignited the war. I told them what I believed to be true at the time; that humans were bloodthirsty creatures, and that they did not deserve their lives on the surface. I told the people that I would kill any human that entered the Underground, and that we would take back the surface in revenge. I believed it to be true, and it gave the people of the Underground hope.”

Papyrus still said nothing.

“Do you see how that turned out, Papyrus? Six more innocent children died. I lost my wife, who to this day refuses to speak to me unless absolutely necessary. Had I reigned myself back, perhaps things could have turned out... better. Perhaps if I took some time to process the deaths of my children before revealing what had happened to the public? Perhaps if I hadn’t been so straightforward in my feelings towards humans, I wouldn’t have had to kill six more? Had I not been so quick to share what I thought to be the truth... took the time to process what had happened, to figure out what others needed to know and what would just cause unnecessary pain... so much suffering could have been avoided.”

He seemed exhausted by the time he had finished. Papyrus took a moment to take everything in.

“I’M... SORRY THAT YOU HAD TO GO THROUGH THAT, ASGORE. I... I REALLY HAD NO IDEA.”

“I tend not to discuss it too often. Even now... I wonder what kind of people they would have grown into. They’re why I never gave up my duties as king; I want to ensure that everyone, human and monster has the opportunity to live happily and peacefully, and that no one ever has to experience what we suffered through ever again.”

Papyrus was simply in awe. It was only natural that he respected Asgore as his king, but seeing him in this new light... he also had to respect him so much more as a person, too. Asgore was one of the hardest working people that he had ever met, even though he had more to deal with than Papyrus could even dream of.

“Do you understand what I’m trying to say to you, Papyrus? I believe myself to be much wiser than I was then. I know that, had I not been so open about the truth, I could have prevented so many awful things from happening. Sometimes... sometimes, people aren’t as forthcoming with the truth as we’d like them to be. And yes, this can be a bad thing. But not always; in many cases, lies are told or the truth is obscured because it can bring about a better outcome than the bare truth could.”

Papyrus thought about it. He had to admit, that made a lot of sense. Still... why would Undyne lie to him? What truth was so necessary to hide that she’d lie to his face in the darkest hour of their friendship?

_ “well, i got my theories, but it’s best comin’ from her, right?” ___

____

Even when he wasn’t there, sans was frustratingly good at being right. There was no use asking anyone else what Undyne’s motives were.

____

“THANK YOU, ASGORE. YOU’VE HELPED ME SO MUCH TODAY, I FEEL AS THOUGH I’VE DONE NOTHING FOR YOU!”

____

“Nonsense, Papyrus! The gift of friendship is the greatest reward one can receive, after all!”

____

“I CAN’T DENY THAT! IN WHICH CASE... WHEN WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE OUR NEXT HANGOUT?”

____

Asgore, delighted that they would be meeting again, looked through his calendar. While he was doing so, Papyrus excused himself to go to the bathroom.

____

Asgore didn’t notice Papyrus taking the bill with him, nor the “NYEH HEH HEH!” as he paid for their meals. Once Papyrus had returned and Asgore had settled on a date next week that would work (which Papyrus happily agreed to), Asgore became aware that he had been thoroughly japed by the Great Papyrus.

____

“Ah... well, thank you Papyrus! You’ll have to let me get the next one!”

____

“WE’LL SEE, ASGORE!”

____

The ride home was just as jubilant as the one up to the café. Once Papyrus had said his goodbyes to Asgore, he felt the happiness ebbing away. Rather than being replaced with anything negative, however, it was replaced with a burning feeling of determination.

____

He whipped out his phone: spirit rejuvenated by Asgore, Papyrus dialled Undyne’s number. He knew for sure that she was his best friend, and he _knew_ that they’d get to the bottom of this issue somehow!

____

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that I spent a lot of time in the beginning just saying "His beloved car", so thanks for bearing with me until now. I do feel that it's important to explain why; even if what Undyne did was wrong, I want it to be clear that, at least in my own perception, it means a lot more to Papyrus than just a car.
> 
> Then we have poor Asgore. I know it seems a bit odd for him to be bringing up his history, especially on the first hangout; obviously it's a touchy subject for Asgore, but I can imagine that he's had to talk about it a lot at this point, and if he can find any way to help someone by telling them what happened in his life, he'll go through it again. Plus, no matter what anyone says to him, I'd say he's always going to be ashamed of himself for what happened; for him, it's kind of an "If you don't know this about me, you need to know before we get any closer; it could change your opinion of me, and I would not blame you" situation for him.
> 
> I know Asgore's lesson might seem a bit odd, and definitely wouldn't be his first takeaway from the situation, but I think the general idea is that he trusts that Undyne has her reasons, and wasn't just lying to Papyrus. He's using the situation both to make it clear to Papyrus what he has done, but is also telling him that people can do hurtful things, but open communication can help us to understand why, and whether or not it can be resolved.


	12. Negative Notions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Undyne's not coping too well with things. After she gets a long-awaited call, she takes some time to think.
> 
> She comes to some realizations.

Undyne woke up with a start. She could feel her head throbbing; the disruption to her sleeping schedule was _seriously_ not doing her any favours. It dawned on her that she was in bed, though she couldn’t recall going. At this point, things were just blurring into a haze, and her perception certainly wasn’t helped by how exhausted she was.

If Undyne was tired, calling her usually produced one of two results: an immediate dismissal (and possibly your number being blocked if you tried again), or being answered and told, with no room for argument, to buzz off until she’d gotten more sleep.

Papyrus was always the exception; at best, she’d will herself to entertain him, especially since he usually knew when to keep it brief. At worst, she’d tell him as kindly as she could that she was too tired for conversation. Which still didn’t quite reach ‘polite’, but she made an effort with Papyrus that she wouldn’t extend to many others.

Given the circumstances, not only was Papyrus the exception, but Undyne actually _wanted_ to answer the phone. Any semblance of tiredness had vanished as she scrambled to answer the phone, trying to pretend as though she wasn’t asleep at... she’d also have to pretend she knew what time it was.

“HELLO? UNDYNE?”

“Papyrus! Hey, um... what’s up?”

Ouch. She knew there was a justification for their interactions being awkward, but geez, that was just _bad_.

“I’VE BEEN DOING SOME THINKING AND... I HAVEN’T BEEN QUITE FAIR TO YOU.”

He always knew exactly how to catch her off-guard.

“I... I BELIEVE THAT I HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO BE UPSET. BUT FREEZING YOU OUT LIKE I’VE BEEN DOING... THAT’S NOT RIGHT.”

She wasn’t sure she’d agree; if someone damaged her piano the way she had to his car, the only freezing they’d do would be at the bottom of a lake. Still, she wanted to make amends, and disagreeing with him for his empathy probably wouldn’t help too much in that regard.

“SO... IF YOU’RE WILLING, PERHAPS WE COULD MEET TOMORROW AT MY HOUSE? I THINK THAT WE NEED AN OPEN, HONEST DISCUSSION ABOUT OUR FRIENDSHIP.”

If she had relaxed herself at all after his previous statement, it was undone immediately. He may as well have just rung a requiem knell on their friendship then and there! Still... that didn’t feel very ‘Papyrus’. If he was going to end things, he’d probably be straightforward about it.

“Y-yeah, that sounds good. What time do you want me to show up at?”

“PERHAPS... WOULD 2PM SUIT?”

She could hear muttering over the phone. She guessed that sans was with him as he made the call, and was pushing him to be more assertive. Papyrus rarely offered up a time himself, for fear of inconveniencing someone, so his suggestion meant that _something_ was different.

Not that it mattered. What mattered was that he was talking to her again, and that he was at least open to hearing her out.

“Sounds perfect! I’ll... uh... see you then?”

She wasn’t quite sure how to approach anything other than the formalities. She’d have loved to have a quick chat, but she wasn’t sure if Papyrus would be comfortable with that yet.

Apparently, neither was he; he lingered without saying anything. She could hear the vague muttering again (and was becoming more sure that it was sans). Papyrus sighed sadly; she guessed that he wanted to catch-up too, but either thought better of it or was told not to.

“SEE YOU THEN, UNDYNE.”

The conversation ended with an abrupt click. She didn’t even get the opportunity to say anything, which was also very ‘un-Papyrus’. He was definitely following sans’ advice.

She couldn’t blame him; Papyrus didn’t exactly have the best record when it came to healthily standing up for himself. Still, this was the first occasion where she was the one that he was standing up against. As she lay in bed, she couldn’t help but revisit what he had said that night.

_“THERE ARE TIMES WHEN I FEEL THIS WAY, UNDYNE. THAT YOU DON’T HAVE ANY RESPECT FOR ME. BUT, BECAUSE YOU’RE MY FRIEND, I PUSH THOSE FEELINGS AWAY; I TRUST YOU EVEN WHEN I FEEL LIKE I SHOULDN’T. I ACCEPT SOME OF THE THINGS YOU DO THAT UPSET ME. BUT RIGHT NOW, I CAN’T DO THAT. YOU’VE BEEN LYING TO ME, AND YOU’VE IGNORED THE ONE THING I ASKED OF YOU.”_

Of course she respected him! She just... didn’t always think ahead. She knew that that caused issues sometimes; her method of solving a problem was to solve it _now_! She tried things that people danced around, or were too hesitant to do themselves for fear of something going wrong. It was her _job_ to be decisive!

So... why did he think that? Did he always feel that way, or did something just change along the way?

She couldn’t honestly think of a single point when he’d expressed any real discontent with their friendship. Sure, they’d had spats here and there, but everything was always so easily resolved! They just learned to respect each others’ boundaries over time... so why did he think that she didn’t respect _him_? He was one of the only people she _did_ respect!

Or those things that upset him... what was he talking about? He never said anything to her like that. Was it the noogieing thing? Like, yeah, she liked to mess with him, but he’d hardly want to end their friendship over a noogie here and there!

Maybe it started when Frisk showed up? She _did_ end up getting pretty brutal trying to capture them... she knew that the way she had treated Frisk was unacceptable. She had apologized to them ten thousand times over, each time being hit with a new wave of guilt over how messed up the whole thing was. Frisk, being Frisk, had forgiven them the first time, but... she just didn’t feel like she had _earned_ it yet.

Actually, thinking about it, she had been pretty hard on everyone under her at that point. She hadn’t realized until she’d heard that kid talking about her.

_“Maybe Undyne... Isn’t actually as cool as we thought. She’s just kinda... mean.”_

If someone who idolized her could end up thinking about her that way, maybe she pushed Papyrus to the same conclusion? She was just so... determined at the time. It was their shot at freedom, returning to the surface, getting revenge on the ones that locked them away! Any hurt feelings would disappear when she helped to take down the barrier!

...Well, that’s what she had thought then, anyway. Maybe she had crossed some lines then. She _had_ been hard on Papyrus especially, mainly because he would do whatever it took to... get into the Royal Guard.

HOW was she supposed to explain that one to him? She knew she didn’t have a choice, but... she wasn’t sure that their friendship could survive that. It had been tearing her apart from day one; it was just a simple lie at first, but that lie was what their friendship was built on!

At the same time... it didn’t exactly look like their friendship was doing too well as things stood. If things did have to end between them, she supposed it was better to do so with honest closure than the mess they were in now.

Undyne would never give up on a fight. EVER. If she thought something was worth pursuing, she’d follow it to any end, hunting until she had achieved her goal.

At that thought, she felt something surging through her. Something raw and powerful. No matter what, Papyrus was her friend! She didn’t care what it would take; she was going to make things right, and she was going to show him that, lie or no lie, she’d always be his friend, even if he didn’t want to be hers!

The emotions surging through her were almost overwhelming; she was terrified, she was angry, she was upset, she was happy... she couldn’t process what was going on. But she allowed herself to feel everything.

Above all, she was determined. And that just might be enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not much to say here, all building up to the semi-end! The next chapter will be the climax of the story, though there'll be a chapter or two to follow-up, just rounding things off. The chapter is turning out to be a lot longer than expected, so given the daily schedule I may have to split it in two, I'll see how things are! 
> 
> Thanks for sticking with it everyone, next chapter will be a big one!


	13. A Forum for Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Today's the day. Undyne and Papyrus are going to meet, and have a long overdue discussion about their friendship.
> 
> It's time to end this discussion and do everything they can to make things right!

“so, how ya feelin’?”

Papyrus and sans were both sat at the kitchen table. Although Papyrus had been overflowing with confidence when he had called Undyne, that was yesterday. As he awaited her arrival, he was growing rather nervous; true, he knew exactly what he wanted to say, but...

“THIS IS GOING TO BE DIFFICULT, ISN’T IT?”

As sans had promised to be more honest with Papyrus, he had decided that the best step forward would be to return that honesty; even though he was going to continue with his can-do attitude, he decided that it would be no harm to admit to sans that it wasn’t always the easiest attitude to maintain.

“probably. but the great papyrus never quit because somethin’ was difficult, right?”

“...RIGHT. STILL, THIS IS MY FIRST TIME HAVING THIS KIND OF CONVERSATION. I NEED TO BE SURE THAT I’M CLEAR, COHERENT AND HONEST!”

sans merely shrugged his shoulders in response.

“sounds like a lotta effort, bro. good on ya for wantin’ to do things right, but maybe take it down a notch? it’s not exactly the conversation you can prepare for, and if you’re runnin’ your mind through so many different possibilities, worryin’ about all these different things that could happen... ya might just burn out.”

Papyrus thought for a moment, and had to admit that that made sense; if he prepared every response, it probably wouldn’t be very sincere. As he thought it over, his mind once again drifted to sans. Was he burnt out from previous experiences? Had something happened-

“heh. maybe that’s just how someone lazy like me would handle things. for someone like me, the concept of putting in effort is e-femur-al.”

As per usual, sans could read him with almost disturbing accuracy. Before Papyrus could make any further comment, sans looked him straight in the eyes. He began to speak, the humour gone from his tone:

“look, papyrus. we’re two very different people. at the end of the day, the way we handle things is always gonna be different. so, no matter what advice i give ya, it’s not really gonna change much outside of a few things ya might not have considered. so, let me tell ya what i know: i know that you’re my brother, the great papyrus. i know that you always give 110%, even for people that don’t deserve it.”

Papyrus didn’t like the implications of that last line, but sans continued before he could interrupt.

“i also know that that’s something i’ll never get. you have it in you to forgive when no one else would. to work hard when anyone else would give up. but... bein’ honest, that’s not always a good thing. sure, you’re always there to help people, but ya gotta think about yourself, too. time and time again, you end up hurt because you give other people too much leeway. so... if i can give ya any advice, i’ll say this: stand your ground, make sure that you’re comfortable, and... be the great papyrus that i know. you care about people, but... ya gotta make sure it goes both ways.”

Papyrus was... floored, if he was honest. It was _extremely_ rare for sans to take things so deadly seriously. He thought over sans’ advice, and felt his once-weakened resolve grow strong once more; that burning feeling returned, and he knew that he could do this.

It seemed that, as always, sans could read his mind. He winked at Papyrus and stood up, heading towards the kitchen door.

“think that about wraps up my part in this. let me know how it goes; i’ll be at grillby’s, call if ya need me?”

“OF COURSE. THANK YOU, SANS! NO MATTER WHAT, I’M GOING TO SEE THINGS THROUGH TO THE END!”

“that’s my bro. see ya soon.”

He strode out of the kitchen, leaving Papyrus by himself. Papyrus looked back to the table, realizing that sans had left his phone behind. He left the room to tell sans, but he was nowhere to be found.

Papyrus hadn’t heard the front door opening, had he?

It didn’t matter, he supposed; he could walk to Grillby’s once everything had been sorted, anyway. For now, it was simply a task of waiting for Undyne to arrive. She hadn’t given any indication that she wasn’t coming, so he had assumed that things would still be on track for their discussion.

2PM arrived... but Undyne didn’t. Papyrus waited at the kitchen table, anxiety beginning to creep back in. Even if things weren’t perfect, he couldn’t lose faith in her!

2:05 arrived... then 2:10 arrived... then 2:15...

It wasn’t until 2:18 that he finally heard a banging on his door. He darted over to open it, and, sure enough...

“PAPYRUS! I... sorry, I...”

Undyne stood on his porch. Well, stood was rather generous; she was hunched over, legs looking ready to give out from under her. Her breathing was heavy and ragged, and she barely seemed capable of forming full sentences.

He helped her in to the kitchen, sitting her at the table before getting her something to drink; a tall glass of water, which was downed in one gulp.

That seemed to be enough for her to become coherent again, becoming much more frantic in her apologies.

“S-sorry I’m so late! I tried to organize a taxi again, but the drivers said that they only let me last time because it was an emergency, so I told them that this was a BIGGER emergency, but they kept saying no! It was about 1:55 by the time I gave up, so I just ran for it!”

Papyrus looked outside to confirm his suspicions. He stood aghast, looking at her with concern.

“YOU _RAN_?! UNDYNE, THE HEAT OUT THERE IS POSITIVELY SCORCHING!”

She looked away, an expression somewhere between sheepishness and shame on her face.

“I... I didn’t wanna be late.”

Papyrus was exasperated. He appreciated that she wanted to honour her commitment, but...

“UNDYNE, THIS COULD HAVE CAUSED SERIOUS PROBLEMS FOR YOU! I’D UNDERSTAND IF YOU WERE LATE, YOU SHOULD HAVE JUST CALLED!”

“Yeah? How would that have gone? ‘Hey Papyrus, y’know that talk we were gonna have about me totalling your car and being a garbage friend? Yeah, gonna need to delay that because I can’t find anyone to bring me to your place.’ Things are bad enough right now, I didn’t want to make them worse!”

That left the two in an awkward silence; although Papyrus wanted to address her concerns, there were too many complex issues there that were branches to their own discussions. Plus, if he were to address one thing over any other, it could change the tone of the conversation; if he accepted her apologies straight away, that could undermine any discussion on how to fix things between them moving forward. If he didn’t address her self-deprecating comments, she could think he agreed with them, which he certainly didn’t want either.

Evidently, he wasn’t the only one trying to be careful in how they handled things. Undyne took a deep breath before beginning to speak again.

“Sorry. I guess I was... kinda confrontational there. I’m not trying to be, I’m just... mad at myself, I guess. I know how important this talk is, so showing up late is already a point against me.”

That was definitely a better start.

“I UNDERSTAND, UNDYNE. I’M GLAD THAT YOU MADE THE EFFORT, JUST... IN FUTURE, PLEASE DON’T PUT YOURSELF IN DANGER FOR MY SAKE, ALRIGHT?”

She bit her tongue; if he was in trouble, she’d take on an entire human army herself if she had to. Still, that wasn’t what the conversation was about.

“I mean... we have to figure out whether or not there’ll _be_ an ‘in future’ first, right?”

As was her style, Undyne pulled no punches and leapt straight in. Papyrus was hoping that they might get away with easing themselves into the discussion, but he supposed there was no use in avoiding the issue.

“RIGHT.”

The two paused for a moment; neither one quite knew how they should actually approach the issue, so Papyrus figured that the best way to do so was to start with what had actually happened and work up to the underlying issues that he had.

“WELL... I SUPPOSE IT WOULD BE BEST TO TALK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED THAT NIGHT. ABOUT MY CAR, AND ABOUT MY... QUESTION.”

Undyne flinched. She knew it was coming, but still didn’t know what to say. She just hoped that the right words would come to her as she explained herself for what had happened with his car.

“Right. So, uh, just in case it’s not obvious... I’m sorry about your car. I shouldn’t have done that, and it was because of me that it was having trouble in the first place. The fact that anythign went wrong at all that night was totally on me, I’m not gonna pretend otherwise. So I’ll cover whatever costs have to be paid to get it fixed.”

He trusted that Undyne was being honest. He just didn’t trust that she understood quite how much it would cost to fix a car; he knew that he and Alphys weren’t in any financial difficulty, but given the fact that they were both his friends, and he didn’t know if they could handle the payments, especially in a lump sum...

“I APPRECIATE THE OFFER, UNDYNE, BUT I THINK THAT’S SOMETHING WE SHOULD COME BACK TO LATER. NOT THAT IT’S NOT IMPORTANT, BUT... IT’S NOT REALLY THE REASON WE’RE HAVING THIS DISCUSSION.”

“Yeah, guess not. Just wanted to make sure that you knew I wasn’t trying to dodge it. So... like you said, I wasn’t being respectful. I shouldn’t have pushed the accelerator, and I really shouldn’t have messed with the engine when I had no real idea of what I was doing. It’s just... it all goes back to the question, I guess.”

Her hands were trembling. She flexed them repeatedly, trying to steady them, but it wasn’t working. No matter how terrified she was, she _had_ to do this. Even if her lie was supposed to protect him, he had a right to the truth at this point. And if it did destroy their friendship, then... maybe it just wasn’t meant to be.

“If I’m honest... I was panicking. Like you said, I was avoiding your question. You don’t know how terrifying the idea is, Papyrus. I’ve been keeping it from you for a reason! But you’re right- it’s not fair to you to keep it a secret. I’m just... I don’t know what’s going to happen when you find out.”

He wanted to comfort her. He wanted to just reach out and say that everything would be okay, and that, no matter what, their friendship would hold.

But... that wouldn’t be the truth, would it? After all of his deliberation and discussions, he knew that it was possible that her answer _could_ destroy their friendship. He couldn’t make a promise if he wasn’t completely sure that he could see it through.

So, even if it went against all of his instincts, he simply motioned for her to continue.

“You want to know why I never let you into the Royal Guard. You think it’s because there was something wrong with you, or because there was something that I thought you weren’t good enough at. Well... the truth is... th-the truth is...”

She closed her eye, unable to look at him. Just do it. Just get it over with. JUST SAY IT ALREADY!

“I WAS NEVER GONNA LET YOU JOIN, ALRIGHT?”

She opened her eye once more and looked to Papyrus. He was initially caught off-guard, due to her shouting and leaping from her chair (Which she hadn’t actually planned on doing; sometimes she’d lose control of herself when she submitted to her emotions), but a sense of gloom washed over his features. She couldn’t allow that to settle, so she sat herself back down, took another deep breath and continued.

“Papyrus, I’m gonna be totally honest from here, okay? The truth is... I was never gonna let you join the Royal Guard. But it wasn’t because of anything you weren’t good at; you were... pretty much perfect. You’re one of the toughest monsters I’ve ever met, your attack patterns are incredible, you did a fantastic job of monitoring and patrolling, you were even great at working and communicating with the local citizens!”

She didn’t realize until she looked at him that her praise wasn’t having the intended effect. She probably should have realized that that was just going to hurt him more.

“SO... IF I REALLY WAS AS WELL-SUITED TO THE POSITION AS YOU SAY... WHY WASN’T I ALLOWED TO JOIN?”

“Papyrus... the Royal Guard have two main jobs: protect the king, and protect the citizens. In the Underground, the only real threat was the possibility of a human attacking us.”

She had hoped that he would figure out what she was implying, but his puzzled expression made it clear that she was going to have to be totally honest.

“Papyrus... we were lucky with Frisk. They took the time to be nice to everyone. To help people. But... not all humans are like that. So, say that Frisk came out of the Ruins. They start taking out the people of Snowdin, and it’s down to you to stop them. What would you do?”

...That wasn’t where he had expected the conversation to go. Still, even if this seemed like a roundabout way of getting to the answers, he knew that she had some reason for presenting the truth to him in such a bizarre manner.

“WELL... I... I WOULDN’T TRY TO KILL THEM, IF THAT’S WHAT YOU’RE ASKING. I’D THINK THAT... IF SOMEONE WAS SO FIXATED ON DOING SO MUCH DAMAGE, THEY MUST BE SO... LOST.”

Papyrus couldn’t help but feel as if this discussion was something familiar; even if he’d never actually had it before, it felt like he knew what he was going to say.

“I’D THINK THAT THE PATH TO MAKING THINGS RIGHT WOULD BE ONE WITHOUT VIOLENCE. I COULD FIGHT; MAYBE I’D WIN, MAYBE NOT. BUT FOR SOMEONE TO DO SOMETHING SO CRUEL... WHAT COULD COMPEL THEM TO DO THAT? IF THEY JUST HAD SOMEONE TO KEEP THEM ON THE STRAIGHT AND NARROW... A TUTOR... A _FRIEND_... THEY COULD BE CONVINCED TO STOP. RATHER THAN FIGHTING THEM TO A STANDSTILL, MAYBE THINGS WOULD BE BETTER IF THEY WERE JUST SHOWN SOME COMPASSION?”

Once he had finished, he looked to Undyne. She didn’t seem very happy with his response. Usually, if she wasn’t happy with his responses, she’d immediately jump in to correct him or argue certain points. Here, she was much more pensive; as if she had been expecting his response?

“Papyrus... that’s a special kind of mindset. Most people couldn’t even consider giving someone a chance if they’d done what I’m describing, but... I know you could. I know you have the space in your soul to forgive, and to try to work with people to be better.”

Her grim tone didn’t go unnoticed.

“In fact... it might even work on a few people. But most of them... most would just kill you on the spot, without looking back.”

She paused to collect herself; even if it was only a hypothetical scenario, the idea of Papyrus being killed by some merciless freak... it was unsettling, to say the least.

“You... I get that you might hate me for this. But I could never let you join the Royal Guard. If a human wandered through and decided that they wanted you dead... you wouldn’t stop them. I know more than anyone that you could shred them like paper if you wanted, but... you’d never want that. It’s not that you can’t handle yourself in a fight, it’s that you’d never let yourself kill somebody else, no matter what. You’re one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met, and the fact that you could show so much mercy is incredible, but... I couldn’t let that happen.”

She didn’t know when the tears had started. All she knew was that they were falling, and there was no point in hiding them, or pretending that they weren’t there. She had laid everything out in the open for him to judge, If she was going to be this vulnerable, she may as well let her true feelings show too.

Papyrus was surprised, to say the least. His initial response was to be hurt; even if her reasons were valid, shouldn’t it have been _his_ choice? Maybe he _would_ be put in harm’s way, but wouldn’t it be worth it if he could save everyone with kindness instead of violence? Even if he did die, he knew that he’d go out smiling; he’d make sure that his killer knew that he still believed in them, and that might just show them that they could do the right thing.

_“Do you understand what I’m trying to say to you, Papyrus? I believe myself to be much wiser than I was then. I know that, had I not been so open about the truth, I could have prevented so many awful things from happening. Sometimes... sometimes, people aren’t as forthcoming with the truth as we’d like them to be. And yes, this can be a bad thing. But not always; in many cases, lies are told or the truth is obscured because it can bring about a better outcome than the bare truth could.”_

Asgore’s words rang in his mind. He thought of two innocent people that had died with the noblest of intentions. He thought of how much of an impact it had had on those closest to them.

“YOU DIDN’T WANT ME TO BE IN HARM’S WAY. AM I RIGHT, UNDYNE?”

He had expected something along the lines of either a non-answer or a sheepish admittance that he was right. Instead, she had a look on her face which told him that, at the very least, he didn’t have the full story.

“I mean... obviously, I don’t want you in harm’s way, but... that’s not my call to make. I mean, I don’t WANT anyone to get hurt, but I... I can’t protect everyone. We need to have people like the dogs or the Hotland guards there to protect people if I can’t do it. If they- If they died in the line of duty... they’d be remembered as heroes. People who fought to keep the Underground safe, but lost their fight.”

He couldn’t tell what she was expressing at this point. Guilt? Frustration? Shame? Everything in a whirlpool, making it difficult to figure out what she was thinking.

“Papyrus... that’s not what would happen if you were to die. I know you probably don’t think this, but... you gave a lot of people hope. You were always cheerful, no matter how much things SUCKED. You were always willing to help people out, even when you had your own work to deal with. If a human came along and killed you, Papyrus...”

She trailed off. The idea struck a nerve in her that very few others could; no matter how much it hard hurt to think that they might never speak again, at least he’d still be _alive_.

Papyrus took a moment to reflect on what she had said. If he was honest, he hadn’t really thought too much about that angle; of course he could be killed in battle, but... what would happen after? Of course, should that happen, his close friends would miss him, but... would anyone else, really? Very few people even knew him by name, usually referring to him as of “one of those wacky skeletons”. How could people really miss him if they didn’t know who he was?

“I’M SORRY UNDYNE, BUT I DON’T QUITE FOLLOW. WHAT EXACTLY ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY?”

“You have no idea how much people looked up to you. Sure, most of ‘em didn’t really show it, but I heard a lot about you. I’d see the things you didn’t. People laughing about something crazy you did. People smiling about how much effort you put into those puzzles. Stuff like that, y’know? They could hope for things to be okay because you made people feel like things were okay. Like they were normal. We were all trapped in the Underground, but you... you weren’t pumped for freedom like everyone else. You tried to make life down there good, and... well, you did a pretty decent job; you helped people to adapt to a hopeless situation. If you died, Papyrus... that’d be gone.”

“UNDYNE, ARE YOU SURE YOU’RE NOT OVERESTIMATING MY INFLUENCE? JUST THE TINIEST BIT?”

“Positive.”

That was... something to take in. He had always wanted to inspire people; he knew that the people of the Underground lacked hope, and he wanted to be a source of hope for people. The idea had always seemed a little far-fetched, though; it wasn’t often that anyone actually gave him much positive feedback. He had figured that, if he were to become a member of the Royal Guard, that he could really start putting his plans into action, but if what Undyne had said was true...

“I...”

He didn’t know what to say. What _could_ you say to that? He didn’t need an answer, as Undyne continued on before he could come up with one.

“I’m not trying to say that it was only for the good of the Underground, Papyrus. You inspired lots of people, but there are people in your life who need you, Papyrus. Like your brother. I don’t know how well he’d cope if you weren’t around.”

Papyrus wanted to shoot back, tell her confidently that sans could take care of himself. Which he could! But that didn’t mean that he _did_. Given his frail condition and his ability to stay in bed for literal days if he couldn’t find motivation, sans’ recklessness when it came to his own wellbeing didn’t need to be stated. It was only with some pushing from Papyrus (or, rather, lifting and carrying) that sans could be persuaded to leave his room when things got bad. Even then, Papyrus didn’t have a 100% success rate.

“I could give you some platitude about how we’d all band together and make sure he was okay, but we couldn’t. We don’t know how to help him. You’re the only one that really gets much from him, and your ability to micromanage the damage that you do makes accidents a lot more avoidable than they would be for any of us.”

She was right. He had trained endlessly to ensure that he had complete control over his damage output; he couldn’t risk any kind of accident happening where sans was involved. Given how difficult a process it was to figure out by himself, he wasn’t sure that anyone else could be trusted to take care of sans properly unless they knew how to do things the way he did.

Even if they _could_ guarantee that no harm would come to sans, that didn’t mean they _knew_ him, either. They’d coddle sans, whereas Papyrus knew that bickering over small things either got a laugh out of him or motivated him to actually give an opinion on something. They’d just pick up after him, whereas Papyrus knew that sans looked forward to finding the most obtuse ways of _not_ picking up after himself, and winding Papyrus up to see how far the laziness could go. The little things that either pushed sans to do better, or at least gave him something to laugh about. How long would it take for everyone else to figure out just what sans needed?

“And... he’s not the only one who needs you, Papyrus.”

She was looking away. Surely she wasn’t implying that she, Undyne, Captain of the Royal Guard, coolest monster in the Underground, needed _him_ in her life? Surely it should have been the other way around?

His thought process must not have been very well hidden, because Undyne’s tone switched from sombre to frustrated fairly quickly.

“OBVIOUSLY I mean me, Papyrus. I’ve thought about it a lot since... what happened. You’re my best friend, Papyrus, and I know that I don’t always do a great job of showing it- oh, who am I kidding? I do a LOUSY job of showing it, sometimes. But I’m telling the truth.”

Throughout the conversation, she had been carrying herself with an air of stoicism. She had been patiently explaining things, even things that hurt to think about. Her resolve was beginning to weaken on that front.

“I get it, okay? That I’m not always the best person to be around. I overdo things sometimes- fine, A LOT of the time. I’m too much for most people. I get that, but... so many people don’t give me a CHANCE. They either see the way I get when I enjoy things and they run for it, or they can’t handle me, or they get fed up with me because I don’t... always have the easiest time of just saying what I’m trying to say.”

She couldn’t deny that she was struggling. She had been vulnerable with Papyrus before, sure, but this was more than vulnerability; she was laying everything out in the open. If he still wanted to give up their friendship, that was fine, but she wouldn’t let him do that without knowing how much their friendship meant to her.

“You were never like that, Papyrus. You can handle the way I do things, you actually LIKE the way I do things! I don’t have to hide anything- I don’t have to be the fearsome Captain of the Royal Guard, and I don’t have to be some weenie that loves music and history. I don’t have to pick which part of me I am, because you’re there for me no matter what. And I get it! I get that I’m not always the greatest friend to have, but I just... I just...”

She couldn’t finish her sentence. Not for a lack of effort, because she didn’t really know how to finish it? She just didn’t know what to do? She just didn’t know how to be a good friend? She just...

“...NEED A HAND WHEN IT COMES TO COMMUNICATION?”

He put a hand on her shoulder and gave a warm smile. She often encouraged him, pushed him to be better when he didn’t know what he was doing wrong. Now he had the opportunity to do the same for her, and he wasn’t going to waste it.

“UNDYNE, I KNOW THAT NONE OF THIS IS EASY. I KNOW THAT EXPRESSING HOW YOU FEEL CAN BE TERRIFYING WHEN YOU DON’T KNOW HOW THE OTHER PERSON IS GOING TO REACT. TRUST ME, I REALLY DO KNOW HOW THAT FEELS. IN FACT... I DO IT MYSELF SOMETIMES, AROUND YOU.”

“Huh?”

“ON OCCASION, I’VE NOT BEEN ENTIRELY HONEST. I’D PRETEND THAT SOMETHING DIDN’T BOTHER ME TOO MUCH, OR THAT I LIKED SOMETHING THAT I DIDN’T, BECAUSE I DIDN’T WANT YOU TO THINK LESS OF ME. HOWEVER, THAT WASN’T FAIR TO YOU. THERE’S NO WAY FOR YOU TO KNOW THAT THERE’S A PROBLEM IF I HIDE THE FACT THAT THERE IS ONE.”

Undyne’s face bore an expression of discontent, before her features softened. If nothing else, she knew that it was something that they had both experienced, which would make understanding it that much easier.

“...Damn it. Well, I guess I know what I need to work on, at least. I... guess I can’t really blame you for not being honest. I’ve learned that I can be kinda pushy when it comes to stuff I like- Alphie had the same issue with me for a little while. I just... I guess I hold my opinions pretty strongly? So when people disagree, I just... wanna know why? I don’t know, I’ve never really thought about any of it before! It took me a long time to even realize that there was a problem in the first place, so I’m still working on it.”

“IT’S GOOD TO HEAR THAT YOU’RE TRYING, UNDYNE! SEE? WE’RE ALREADY MAKING TREMENDOUS PROGRESS!”

She sat for a moment, looking at him in disbelief. She was tempted to point out that ‘not behaving in a way that makes your loved ones hide their opinions from you’ wasn’t exactly a huge milestone, but she held back. She knew that Papyrus meant what he was saying, and that he’d be proud of any progress that she was making. Besides, even if they _were_ making progress, she felt as though they were dancing around the real issue.

“So... where do we go from here?”

“WELL... WE WORK ON OUR COMMUNICATION, DON’T WE?”

“Is it worth working on in the first place? Our friendship was built on a lie, Papyrus! Doesn’t that mean ANYTHING to you?!”

Her hands were in fists, and her lip was turned up in a snarl. That usually meant that she was about to follow up with an angry rant, though she deflated rather quickly and carried on, confidence waning as she spoke.

“No, seriously, it doesn’t bother you? At all? The fact that we became friends, bonded over something that I knew I was never gonna give you? How about the fact that I still trained you, still worked with you, let you believe that one day I was finally gonna give you a position, knowing the entire time that that wasn’t gonna happen?’”

“WHY _DOES_ IT BOTHER YOU? YOU DIDN’T DISMISS ME IMMEDIATELY, DID YOU? YOU GAVE ME A CHANCE, AND THEN DECIDED THAT I WASN’T SUITED FOR THE ROYAL GUARD. OF COURSE IT HURTS TO THINK THAT YOU WERE NEVER GOING TO LET ME IN, BUT... I UNDERSTAND YOUR REASONS.”

His voice didn’t waver as he spoke; he felt completely secure in what he was saying.

“I KNOW YOU, UNDYNE. I KNOW THAT YOU NEVER GIVE UP, NO MATTER HOW IMPOSSIBLE THE TASK MAY BE! BE IT BECOMING WELL-VERSED IN HUMAN AND MONSTER HISTORY OR BE IT SOMEHOW MANAGING TO SUPLEX YOURSELF, YOU CAN DO ANYTHING! AND IF YOU CAN DO THINGS LIKE THAT, I SEE NO REASON THAT WE CAN’T CONTINUE TO BE FRIENDS, REGARDLESS OF HOW THINGS STARTED OUT!”

It wasn’t until he had finished speaking that he felt tears pricking at his eyesockets. Had they been there long? He wasn’t quite sure. Not that it mattered; it wasn’t as though he had any reason to hide them. Neither of them had much of a reason to put on a brave face.

And if he was totally honest, he was afraid too. As the conversation continued, he felt his beliefs strengthening; the more he actually heard from Undyne, the more he understood how much their friendship meant to both of them, and that it would absolutely be possible to fix things.

He was afraid because it seemed the conversation was having the _opposite_ effect on her; she seemed to have more and more doubts as the conversation continued. If they were going to fix things between them, he needed to ensure that Undyne was willing to have faith in their friendship, and in herself.

“UNDYNE... I KNOW THAT YOU DOUBT YOURSELF. YOU’VE MADE IT CLEAR TO ME OVER THE COURSE OF OUR FRIENDSHIP, AS WELL AS DURING THIS DISCUSSION. I’M NOT GOING TO PRETEND THAT YOU’RE PERFECT; EVEN IF I DO LOOK UP TO YOU, YOU HAVE FLAWS, JUST LIKE ANYONE ELSE. BUT... NOT EVERYONE KNOWS THAT, DO THEY?”

Given her reaction, he could tell he was right on the mark. He didn’t want to push her too far, but he knew that she needed to hear this.

“YOU SPEND SO MUCH OF YOUR TIME HAVING TO BE PERFECT, UNDYNE. YOU’RE THE GOLD STANDARD FOR MONSTERKIND, AND YOU HAVE A REPUTATION TO LIVE UP TO. YOU CAN’T AFFORD TO LET YOURSELF BE... WELL, YOURSELF. SO, WHEN THE TIME COMES FOR YOU TO BE YOURSELF... I DON’T THINK THAT THE ‘YOU’ THAT COMES OUT IS A BAD PERSON. I THINK THAT IT’S SIMPLY THE CASE THAT YOU HAVE DIFFICULTY SEPARATING THE UNDYNE THAT YOU _HAVE TO BE_ WITH THE UNDYNE THAT YOU _ARE_. BUT... MAYBE IF WE WERE TO JUST TALK MORE, BE HONEST WITH EACH OTHER, WE COULD _BOTH_ BE OUR TRUEST, BEST SELVES?”

He didn’t expect an answer immediately. He didn’t know how long she sat there, thinking it over. Running through so many personal thoughts and experiences in her head. Eventually, she started to cry. It was a gradual process; it started with a few tears, which led to some sniffles. Then came the choked breathing, and the frantic rubbing at her eye.

Not that it made much of a difference; his reaction was much the same.

She didn’t stay upset for very long, though; while the crying continued, she soon began to laugh. The grimace on her face becoming a genuine smile, one that signified that he had gotten through to her, at least on some level.

“I’ll never get you, Papyrus. You- I get the whole ‘mercy’ concept, even if you push it too far sometimes, but... you really do just _get_ me. And I- I think I get you, too. Man, I was such an idiot! OF COURSE we can work things out! I know I’ve gotta earn it, and I know that it’s not gonna be a simple fix, but... there’s nothing we can’t get through TOGETHER! ...Right?”

“RIGHT.”

And there it was. Things weren’t perfect, of course they weren’t. They probably never would be, either.

There were always going to be bad days. There were going to be times when his dreams were just out of reach, and he’d need to rethink things. And yes, there would absolutely be more difficulty with Undyne. That was just how it was; to be his best self, he knew that he needed to do his best with what he had. No, things wouldn’t and couldn’t be perfect, but he had accepted that.

He knew beyond a shadow of doubt that he wasn’t perfect himself, either; if their friendship was going to work, it wasn’t just Undyne that would have to work on it; he knew that his own communication skills were actually somewhat lacking. He knew that he couldn’t just pretend to like things that he didn’t, or that there were no problems if there were problems. He owed it to her, and to any other friends, to be honest about his issues, and not to let them spiral out of control for the sake of not inconveniencing others.

No, he wasn’t perfect. No, Undyne wasn’t perfect. No, nothing was perfect.

Still, as Undyne grabbed him and pulled him into a hug (Well, something between a hug and a suplex, at least), the two laughed and just accepted life for what it was. For as long as they were in their awkward embrace, the reality settled in with both of them that their friendship would last through this, and anything else that life had to throw at them, no matter how difficult things might get.

As far as Papyrus was concerned, that was pretty much perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that's the climax of the story! It's not quite over yet: there are at least two more chapters, maybe three, to round off a few ideas and loose ends. But the journey itself is just about over.
> 
> This chapter itself is by far the longest, and with good reason! I wanted to ensure that the conversation between the two was genuine; that it didn't switch about too abruptly that everything went naturally to each point... it's been difficult, to say the least. Plus, I've had less free time than expected, so work has been even more difficult on it, especially in keeping up with updates. I don't know how it's looking from everyone else's perspective, but it's super late as I post this, to the point that it's technically missed a daily update, but I hope the chapter itself is enough to make up for it!
> 
> I haven't been able to proofread this one as thoroughly; it's simply too long, and I'm fairly exhausted. Hopefully it's good enough as is, but if people have any issues (pacing, interactions etc) I'd be willing to give them another look once I've slept!
> 
> Still, while it's certainly not perfect, I hope you're all happy with it! If not, I'm more than willing to listen to any criticisms in the comments!
> 
> You may have noticed that I said in a comment that there was one particular piece of dialogue that bothered me, and that I'd be pointing it out as I wrote. So, I went back, and... it never happened. Turns out it was exclusive to Undertale the Musical, and when I went back to double check it in the game, it wasn't there. Oops.
> 
> You may have noticed that I switched fairly early on from Undyne calling Alphys 'Alphy' to 'Alphie'. The former is what she says in canon, I just default to the latter. I realized in this chapter that I was making the mistake... oh well. Nothing to be done about it, I suppose!
> 
> Also, the fonts in this chapter. Sweet mercy that was an ordeal. This is the most dialogue heavy chapter, so... yeah, makes sense.
> 
> I really want to give you all a sincere thank you for your support, but I want to save it for the very end. I have a lot to say, and I feel like it'd be somewhat diminished by adding more chapters afterwards. So, for now, I'll give a sincere thank you, with more to come!
> 
> Final note, I'll throw in that it's super late as I publish this; after having looked it over multiple times (to do the fonts, to do italics, and general grammar and flow checks, on top of reading to see if it feels right), I still have my doubts, but it's bedtime. Hope y'all enjoy, I've put a lot of effort into this one and I hope it's the payoff that people were waiting for!


	14. Restaurant Rendezvous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that they've worked things out, Papyrus and Undyne go to return sans' phone to him.
> 
> The two explore their new boundaries, and Undyne has some ideas.

The dust had settled, and the issue had been resolved, more or less; of course, they had a long way to go, but as it stood, their friendship would hold. That was definitely enough progress for one day. 

Neither was too sure what to do next; suggest a hangout? Just leave things where they were? Before either could suggest anything, a quick buzz sounded from the table; a notification from a phone.

“OH! THAT’S RIGHT, SANS LEFT HIS PHONE BEHIND! GIVEN HOW MUCH PROGRESS WE’VE MADE TODAY, I’D SAY IT WOULD BE REASONABLE TO WRAP THINGS UP FOR NOW! WOULD YOU LIKE TO ACCOMPANY ME WHILE I BRING HIS PHONE TO HIM AT GRILLBY’S?”

“Sure! We can get something to eat while we’re there, I’m STARVING!”

Okay, Papyrus. She’s your friend. She won’t think any less of you, and you promised to tell the truth.

“WELL, ER... PERHAPS IT WOULD BE BETTER IF I DIDN’T EAT ANYTHING? I DON’T MIND IF YOU DO, OF COURSE!”

“Huh? Somethin’ still wrong?”

“N-NO, IT’S JUST... I’M NOT ACTUALLY TOO FOND OF THE FOOD AT GRILLBY’S. THE GREASE MAKES ME FEEL SICK.”

She paused for a moment, as if taking that information in. It didn’t seem to be sitting well.

“SERIOUSLY? Dude, you should have said something sooner! I’m cool with finding somewhere else to eat when we hang out!”

He knew that nothing so trivial was going to get in the way of their friendship, and he knew that Undyne would never judge him for something so silly. Still, given the genuine concern she was showing, he couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief when she confirmed that she was okay with it.

“Still... might get something for the road if you’re gonna be bringing sans’ phone back to him anyway...”

“UNDYNE! I REALLY DON’T MIND STAYING IF YOU WANT TO GET SOMETHING! I JUST WON’T HAVE ANYTHING MYSELF, THAT’S ALL! BESIDES, I’M NOT TOO HUNGRY ANYWAY!”

“Well... if you’re cool with it... then what are we waiting for?!”

While Papyrus did stop to ensure that they had some bottled water with them, he was content with their arrangement. He knew that Undyne would be willing to make compromises, as was he. It would just take some time for him to get used to, but he was sure he’d be more than comfortable once they’d both adapted.

The two made their way to Grillby’s, letting themselves get into a heated debate on the way there. It was very rare that Papyrus would debate opinions; he’d always accept what other people liked, no matter how little sense it made to him. And, if someone didn’t like something that he liked, he’d also accept it; everyone’s tastes were different, after all.

Undyne, however, told him that it would be fun to argue in favour of something he liked; they’d both understand their opinions more clearly if they had to defend them. And, honestly? She was right. While it wasn’t a situation he was used to, he had to admit that he was having a blast, not stopping even when they had reached Grillby’s.

“I WILL CONCEDE THAT THE PLOT MAY NOT BE THE MOST COMPLEX, BUT THE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT MORE THAN MAKES UP FOR IT!”

“Papyrus. What POSSIBLE character development could ‘Peek-A-Boo With Fluffy Bunny’ have?!”

“IT’S ALL ABOUT SUBTEXT! WHILE EVEN ON A BASIC LEVEL, ONE CAN ENJOY FLUFFY BUNNY’S HARMLESS JAPES- OH, SANS, THERE YOU ARE!”

Papyrus’ planned rant was cut short when he spotted his brother. The two made their way over to the bar, where sans sat, a single empty seat beside him. Papyrus handed sans’ phone to him; sans didn’t need to ask how things had gone, as Papyrus’ beaming and Undyne’s presence told enough of the story that he didn’t need filling in.

“so, guessin’ you two made up? nice. any plans for the rest of the day?”

“WELL, UNDYNE WAS HOPING TO GET SOMETHING TO EAT! ONCE SHE’S HAD HER FOOD... WELL, THE POSSIBILITIES ARE NEAR ENDLESS!”

“HECK YEAH they are! Once I’ve gotten a good burger into me, we can figure out what to do; I don’t do planning on an empty stomach.”

“WISE WORDS, UNDYNE! I SHALL GO AND ORDER FOR YOU, I’LL BE BACK IN A MOMENT!”

Before she could object, Papyrus had dashed over to try to get Grillby’s attention. She didn’t have many options, so she decided to take the seat beside sans.

The fact that he had only saved one seat hadn’t slipped by her. Still, things were good, and she figured that arguing with sans over something that could easily have been a coincidence wouldn’t be the brightest move. Instead, she tried to strike up a conversation with him.

“So, uh... think the place has changed much since Grillby moved up to the surface?”

“nah. i’d believe ya if ya told me he just brought the place up with him.”

There was something about sans’ tone that was off-putting (but then, that was a fairly common occurrence), but she decided she’d just accept it as some weird joke that she didn’t get.

“...Yeah, guess I could see that. Much of a change in clientèle?”

“not that i’ve seen. sure, you’ll get the occasional new customer, but i’m still his number one customer. the usual folk still show up, even if punk hamster keeps complaining about humans and saying he’s gonna stop. dogs come in at least once a week for some poker. usual stuff.”

She glanced over to the usual table that the dogs would sit at. They weren’t there, but she could still picture the little group playing poker together after a hard day’s work (or during, if they thought they could get away with it, which they rarely did). She smiled as she reminisced on ther days in the Underground; of course she had been desperate to free her people, but she couldn’t deny that she had fond memories of the place.

“It’s kinda crazy, huh? Even with how much everything has changed, some things feel exactly the same.”

“tell me about it. still, there are some changes; grillby caters for parties now.”

Papyrus returned with Undyne’s food, and the two left sans to his devices and sat in one of the booths (Papyrus had invited sans along, but he was comfortable enough where he was).

As the two sat down, Undyne looked around; everything was near identical to the way it had been in the Underground; really, the only thing that seemed different was that there were a few awards lining the walls. She supposed that at least a few were long overdue, and knew that Grillby would have plenty more had circumstances been different.

That was when inspiration struck.

“ANYWAY, AS I WAS SAYING BEFORE, FLUFFY BUNNY’S CHARACTER IS ACTUALLY RATHER COMPLEX! YOU SEE, IF YOU LOOK AT HER FACIAL EXPRESSIONS ON EACH PAGE...”

Undyne didn’t want to ignore Papyrus, but she had to admit that she wasn’t paying her full attention; she had an idea that she absolutely had to see through, and ran through checklists in her head; it would take some careful planning, but she could make her idea work.

Papyrus didn’t seem to notice the gears whirring in her head, happily continuing to explain Fluffy Bunny’s love for her family and her hidden emotional turmoil. By the time Undyne had a solid outline in her head, he still hadn’t finished.

She listened to the rest of his rant, happy to hear how enthusiastic he was (Even if she was fairly confused, due in no small part to her missing certain parts of his explanation). Though she was glad to hear him being himself unabashedly, without hiding anything from her, she was even happier thinking about how her plan would unfold.

When the two had finally left Grillby’s, Undyne excused herself; she told him that she had something important that she had to sort out, but that they would hang out again soon.

He accepted, and the two parted ways for the day. She made her way to the librarby, taking out her phone as she walked. She had several calls to make, and a few things she needed to brush up on if this was going to work.

And it WAS going to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I've been thinking more about what I'm going for, and I might have to retract that comment about 2 or 3 more chapters; honestly, it's surprisingly difficult to figure out how many it will be in the end. I've been thinking about how some things might work, and a few more chapters just to let the ideas breathe and sink in would make things much smoother.
> 
> This chapter is an example of a breather chapter; it wasn't really in the plans, it was just a footnote in another chapter if anything at all. Still, it gives time for things like Undyne and Papyrus' relationship to be shown (so you don't just have to take my word for it that they're working on it) and sets things up, rather than just abruptly hopping from point to point.
> 
> I don't know how long the fic is gonna be any more, but I do have the main plot threads to be addressed in mind, and I've planned out the ending, too. I just keep getting distracted on the way there!


	15. Penultimate Preparations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Undyne's plan to unfold. She has everything set up, it's just a matter of getting everything sorted.

Today was the day.

She’d gone over every detail; she’d planned everything as was necessary, invited everyone that should be there, helped in setting everything up... she left no stone unturned, and was pretty happy with her handiwork.

Organizing everything had been difficult enough; there were several people that she needed to get on board, and the fact that they had all been available (or were able to make time) at such short notice was nothing short of a miracle. Then there was the actual schedule; although it was simple enough on paper, there was so much room for error that she’d had to set up several backups just in case.

First things first: she knew that Papyrus had to collect his car from the repair shop. She had considered offering to collect it for him, but she figured that that would probably be in REALLY poor taste. To be honest, she felt lucky enough that he was letting her come with him to collect it at all! She had promised as much as she could that she wouldn’t do anything reckless, and that she’d make sure not to get any dirt in the car.

Even at that, he had seemed hesitant. If not for the fact that her plan _required_ her to be with him when he got his car back, she probably would have backed out and waited until he was absolutely certain that he was okay with her being in the car again. She couldn’t afford to wait, however, so she’d just have to settle for being on her best behaviour in the car and making sure that her plans unfolded without a hitch.

Even if it felt painfully lacklustre, she stayed true to her word; she wiped her feet before getting into the car, which she did by opening the door and not vaulting over it. It felt awkward, stilted and painfully... not her. She looked over to Papyrus, realizing that she may have been making her feelings a little too clear, but he didn’t seem to have noticed. In fact, he was positively beaming; the look on his face was enough for her to set aside any misgivings she had. Papyrus’ positivity was infectious, so those misgivings disappeared rapidly enough anyway.

Naturally, the first thing that Papyrus had wanted to do was to go for a drive. Undyne was all for it; he had been _itching_ to speed along the highway again, and she had to admit she loved seeing how _alive_ he looked when he was driving like that. Besides, when Papyrus was driving, he tended to spend more time in his own head; partially because he’d be much more clearly focused on his surroundings, and partially because the car was one of Papyrus’ personal bubbles, which meant that he was more comfortable reflecting on his thoughts there than he would be anywhere else. With Papyrus mostly preoccupied, that would give her the chance to run through the plan again in her head, keeping an eye on how everything was progressing and adjusting as was necessary.

So, they were on the road according to schedule. She’d give him some time to just enjoy the drive, but they’d soon have to think about making their way to their destination. She had weighed out how she’d go about convincing Papyrus to go; she knew he’d have no objections to going, of course, the difficulty would probably lie in getting Papyrus off of the road. She figured it would be best to start early; she didn’t know how long it would take to convince him, and she could NOT risk them being late.

“Y’know, it’s actually pretty impressive how well the repairs went. It’s like the car is brand new!”

“THE MECHANICS CERTAINLY DID DO A FANTASTIC JOB!”

“Y’know, I, uh... I’m pretty sure that Frisk and Toriel are staying home today. Might be cool to swing by their place and show off the repairs, right?”

Wow, Undyne. Real smooth. Why not just TELL him if you’re gonna be THAT obvious about it?

Still, if Papyrus had suspected that something was up, he was going along with it.

She saw his expression shifting slightly, as it did when he was considering something. He was never one to intrude on someone’s space for his own needs, but he could probably tell that she was up to something. If she was to hazard a guess, he was probably weighing up whether or not Toriel was in on it, or whether Undyne’s plans were more... impromptu.

Thankfully, his smile widened.

“THAT SOUNDS LIKE AN EXCELLENT IDEA, UNDYNE! I’M SURE THAT THEY WOULD LOVE TO SEE HOW WELL MY CAR IS DOING! WHY DON’T WE MAKE OUR WAY OVER NOW?”

That was... WAY easier than expected. She’d assumed that it would be more difficult to get him off of the road. Maybe he was still a little bit on edge about the car, given how careful he’d had to be before the incident? Or... maybe he was worried that she’d pull another stunt, and was just trying to get her out of the car as soon as possible?

NO. She couldn’t worry about stuff like that; today wasn’t about her, and she wasn’t going to let things go down the drain worrying about something that they had moved past!

She allowed her nerves to settle as Papyrus began the drive to Toriel’s house. Naturally, none of the delays she had accounted for actually came about; there was next to no traffic, they weren’t stuck for too long at any traffic lights, they didn’t have to stop for gas... if not for the fact that they were going to be ridiculously early, she would have been over the moon with how smooth of a journey it had been.

They made their way to Toriel’s house, a full three hours before they were supposed to be there. Although her nerves were still pressing at her a little, she had prepared for this. She looked over as they pulled up to Toriel’s house and, sure enough, Frisk was sitting in the front garden, waiting. She hadn’t specified how early they might be, so she was extremely relieved that Frisk was so well prepared.

She was doing her best to play it casual, or, at the very least, trying to ensure that Papyrus didn’t figure out that they were hiding something from him. She strolled over (After carefully exiting the car) and pulled them into a crushing bear hug.

“Heya, punk! Good to see ya!”

“HELLO, FRISK! I, TOO, AM HAPPY TO SEE YOU!”

Once the greetings and greeting hugs were out of the way, Papyrus proudly showed off his newly fixed car to Frisk. As he did so, Undyne signalled to Frisk to keep Papyrus busy. They saluted her, before leading Papyrus into their back yard; they had set up some puzzles to keep Papyrus occupied, some of which seemed surprisingly intricate, given the short time frame they had to make them.

That kid really was something else. She wouldn’t be surprised if the puzzles kept Papyrus busy for the whole three hours!

Still, she wasn’t going to bet on that; now that Papyrus was actually at the house, she needed to get things rolling much earlier. She knocked on the front door, tapping her foot impatiently as she waited for a response. It wasn’t long before Toriel answered; she was, evidently, shocked by Undyne’s unexpected timing.

“Ah, Undyne! You’re... quite early. I’m afraid that very little has actually been set up yet!”

Undyne could tell straight away that the added pressure of getting everything ready with the threat of Papyrus walking in at any moment wasn’t going to sit well with Toriel.

“Don’t worry, Toriel! If anyone can keep Papyrus occupied for three hours, it’s Frisk. They have puzzles set up in the garden, and I have no doubt that Papyrus will have his own counter puzzles for Frisk. As long as we bring out drinks and snacks here and there, he’ll be happy to stay outside and he’ll be none the wiser!”

Even though Undyne knew her logic was sound, Toriel still didn’t seem quite convinced. Nevertheless, she clapped her hands together and ushered Undyne inside. Her brow furrowed as she mentally adjusted her plans to account for the change of plans.

“Very well! Still, we’ll have to set things up as quickly as possible; the sooner we finish, the sooner one of us can stay outside with Frisk and Papyrus, to ensure that he doesn’t come in before six o’ clock!”

It went without saying that one of them would have to stay inside to ensure that everyone that needed to be there arrived on time, and that everyone on that list was accounted for. Given the fact that Asgore was one of those people, it also went without saying that Undyne would be the one waiting inside.

She looked to Toriel with a toothy grin and nodded. The set-up wouldn’t be too complicated, and Undyne was sure that the two of them would have everything ready in no time.

The air of tension as they worked was palpable; Papyrus was a wild card, which meant that, even with Frisk’s best efforts, it was possible that he could walk in at any moment and the entire plan would be ruined. Still, they worked as efficiently could, ensuring that one of them went outside every so often to check on Papyrus and Frisk, and to ensure that they’d have no reason to enter the house.

Over the next two hours, their work continued, and Undyne’s worries began to melt away; everything was in place and all of the necessary preparations had been made, and Papyrus was still outside with Frisk. With everything in order, Toriel went outside to join them, which meant that the chances of Papyrus getting in without warning were practically zero.

That left Undyne in the house, waiting for everyone to arrive. Naturally, Asgore was the first arrival, showing up twenty minutes early. She couldn’t deny how glad she was; even if she had everything under control, Asgore would be a great help in explaining everyone’s roles to them.

As six o’ clock drew closer, she had checked off every name on her list, and Asgore had thoroughly explained what each person had to do.

“Undyne, do not be so worried! You’ve prepared everything to the highest standard, this will be perfect!”

She didn’t have it in her to respond, but she smiled appreciatively to him and gave a thumbs up. Moments later, an alarm buzzed on her phone.

Six o’ clock.

In mere moments, Papyrus, Frisk and Toriel would be back inside, and it would finally be time to get things in motion.

She was more than ready.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was definitely fairly uneventful, and was also meant to just be a footnote, but in all honesty, it was either a filler chapter or rushing the next one, and I went with the former. I have some time off work, so I'll have more than a few hours to get some writing done. The next chapter will make up for this one!
> 
> I don't think anything in the chapter is too big of a problem, but if there are any weak points, it honestly just comes down to having very little time on this one. As always, criticisms are welcome!
> 
> Also, I know that I was super vague surrounding what's actually happening, but that's mainly down to what's happening next chapter. I don't know if anyone has figured it out, but if not, I don't want to spoil it! Again, I'll be making up for this chapter by expanding and clarifying on everything in the next chapter!


	16. Celebrations and Ceremonies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Undyne's plan to go ahead!
> 
> Papyrus has no idea what he's in for!

“WOWIE! THAT ONE WAS ABSURD AND DIFFICULT TO FOLLOW! IT’S A SHAME THAT TRAPS DON’T REALLY HAVE A PLACE ON THE SURFACE, FRISK – YOU’D BE AN EXCELLENT TRAP MAKER!”

While Papyrus loved any well-constructed puzzle, the thought that Frisk had put into this particular puzzle had truly been something else; they didn’t make any attempt to explain it, simply handing him a manual full of gibberish. He eventually caught on, realizing that the manual was, indeed, the rulebook for solving the puzzle; it wasn’t in gibberish, but had been put through a cipher.

Even for a puzzling master like Papyrus, it had been surprisingly difficult, requiring a great deal of outside-the-box thinking. Once he had decoded the rulebook and found the hidden treasure (a present bone with ‘Congratulations!’ engraved on it – Frisk really did know him exceptionally well), he triumphantly stood before Frisk and Toriel, delighted with his victory.

“Well done, Papyrus! Frisk worked quite hard to set this one up, so I hope that you enjoyed it!”

He turned to Frisk, winking at them with a wide smile.

“THAT MAY JUST BE THE GREATEST PUZZLE I’VE EVER HAD THE PLEASURE OF SOLVING! I NEVER THOUGHT THAT ANY PUZZLE WOULD MATCH THE COLOURED TILE PUZZLE, BUT THIS ONE IS JUST AS PERPLEXING – WITH LESS ROOM FOR ERROR!”

Frisk giggled at the remark; while they hadn’t actually told Toriel about the incident with the coloured tile puzzle in Snowdin, she still laughed. Papyrus figured it was her way of supporting Frisk in being more expressive with their emotions; he was no stranger to exaggerating a little to get a bigger laugh or a wider smile from sans.

Toriel’s phone buzzed. She quickly checked it, before turning to Papyrus and Frisk.

“I’m glad that you’re both having a good time, but perhaps it’s time to take a short break from these puzzles? I do think it would be for the best if we were to head inside!”

Papyrus noticed a slight sense of urgency to her voice; he supposed it was about Frisk. Although he knew that Frisk’s mind was sharper than a spear, he was not their mother, and he knew that Toriel wouldn’t want to risk them overtiring themself. As such, he agreed with Toriel’s request, and the trio headed inside. Frisk dashed ahead of them, straight out into the living room.

He immediately noticed the decorations as he entered the kitchen. They looked quite familiar, in fact:

“TORIEL, ARE THESE MY DECORATIONS?”

She smiled and nodded to him. After a brief moment, however, her smile drooped the slightest bit, giving her a slight air of... sadness?

“They are, Papyrus! I, ah... I wanted to apologize to you. I shouldn’t have dismissed them at Frisk’s party. They really are quite lovely, and I can see how much love and care was put into their making.”

He could see tears forming in her eyes as she spoke.

“Frisk encouraged me to look more closely at them and, well... I couldn’t help but reminisce. They reminded me of... someone else who put a great deal of effort into the gifts that they made for loved ones.”

Although curious, Papyrus didn’t press her or ask for any more information; he had an idea as to who she could be referring to, but figured it wasn’t his business to speculate.

She wiped the tears from her eyes and her smile widened once more.

“Ah, but that’s just an old goat and her memories – today is quite a special occasion, I don’t want to keep anyone waiting!”

Before he could ask her what the occasion actually was, she began to steer him towards the living room. In the moments before he got there, he racked his brains trying to think of what occasion he had forgotten, but none came to mind.

They entered the living room, which had been organized in an extremely specific manner: there were several seats facing the window, each one occupied by someone he knew. Dogamy, Dogaressa, Greater Dog, Lesser Dog and Doggo had been sitting at the back, and most of their heads turned to see him as soon as the door had opened; Doggo’s reaction hadn’t been quite as quick, only turning after being nudged by Dogaressa.

In front of them sat... he didn’t know their names, but they were two guards that worked in Hotland. He didn’t know them too well, but he knew them to be nice fellows. Beside them were Grillby, Gerson and Alphys, the latter of whom stopped a conversation in order to look back as he entered the room.

In the front row sat Frisk, sans and an empty seat. At the front of the room stood Asgore and Undyne, the latter of whom was wearing a full suit of armour. Undyne had a serious expression, whereas Asgore bore his usual smile.

Toriel moved past him to take the empty seat, leaving him standing at the door, feeling hopelessly confused.

“I... UM, I DON’T WANT TO BE RUDE, BUT AM I MISSING SOMETHING HERE?”

He heard a chorus of laughter coming from the seats, which was silenced by Asgore.

“Papyrus the Skeleton, please come forward, and stand before me.”

Even more bewildered, he walked forward, standing in front of Asgore. Asgore gave nothing away, though he was beaming as Papyrus stood in front of him.

“On this day, you stand in the presence of your king, to whom you will swear an oath of fealty. Bearing witness to this is the Captain of the Royal Guard, Undyne; you will swear to follow her order to the best of your abilities, and to live up to the standard that she has set. Before you is an audience of your people; your family, your allies and colleagues. You will swear to do right by them: to co-operate with them to ensure the prosperity of our people, to protect them should they be vulnerable, and, above all, to be a shining example of the greatest that monsterkind has to offer. Do you understand?”

...this couldn’t be what he was thinking of, could it?

“YES, I UNDERSTAND, YOUR MAJESTY!”

“Very good. In that case, we can begin the proceedings: could Dr. Alphys, General Gerson and Private Grillby please make their way to the front of the room?”

Papyrus stayed where he was, watching as Alphys, Gerson and Grillby made their way up. He was rather surprised to learn that Grillby had a history in the monster military, but he ensured that he maintained a professional demeanour.

“Papyrus, please kneel before your associates; they will each explain your duties and roles, to which you will say “I do”.”

Shaking, Papyrus knelt. He was first approached by Grillby.

“...do you swear to honour your community? To serve them not because you are obligated, but out of a desire to see the prosperity of your kind?”

“I DO.”

Grillby nodded, before stepping back. Papyrus had never actually heard his voice before; he didn’t dwell on the thought, as Gerson approached him.

“Do you swear to do everything in your power to protect your people? To stand on the front lines to protect them, even at the possible cost of your own life?”

“I DO.”

Gerson gave him a toothy grin and a thumbs up, before stepping back. Alphys then stepped forward.

“D-do you swear to stand for the j-justice of your people? To be honest and t-truthful, and to do what is n-necessary for the preservation and p-protection of monsterkind?”

“I DO!”

She smiled, her eyes watering; she briefly reached out to him, but thought against it, given the professional nature of the ceremony. Once the three had said their pieces, Asgore motioned for them to return to their seats. Once they had done so, he turned to Papyrus.

“With these pledges, you have committed yourself to upholding the ideals of the crown. You shall now swear an oath of fealty to your king and queen.”

He said nothing more as Toriel walked over to stand beside him. She kept her smile the entire time, though no one missed that she hadn’t so much as glanced in Asgore’s direction, keeping her gaze squarely on Papyrus. She spoke to him in a manner that was calm, yet carried an air of strictness.

“Papyrus the Skeleton, you stand today before your king and queen, having sworn to do right by your people. As you kneel before us, you are expected to pledge your allegiance to the crown: you shall follow the orders of your leaders, in order to preserve the justice, prosperity and cultural integrity of your people. Any act committed against the crown or your people shall be considered not just as an act of malice, but also as an act of treason. Should you, through inaction or intention, allow any harm to come to your people, you shall be considered an enemy of monsterkind. Do you understand these terms, and swear your fealty to your rulers?”

“I UNDERSTAND, AND I DO.”

“Very well. Papyrus, you have my blessing.”

She bowed, before returning to her seat. Asgore stepped in front of Papyrus, where Toriel had been standing.

“Papyrus, you have my blessing.”

He, too, bowed to Papyrus, before stepping back. He motioned for Papyrus to stand, before looking to the audience.

“We now call upon two witnesses: these witnesses shall speak in Papyrus’ favour, testifying to his good nature and his qualifications. Frisk, sans, please make your way to the front of the room.”

The two stood facing the audience, though Frisk turned to smile at him, and sans turned to wink, before both resumed their positions.

Frisk went first; they began by explaining Papyrus’ intelligence and way of thinking. They spoke about how Papyrus was powerful, but his greatest strength would be in preventing and limiting violence that would happen in the first place. They spoke about his commitment to his loved ones, and his readiness to push for justice over revenge.

Once they had finished, they gave Papyrus a thumbs up, and motioned for sans to speak.

“so, uh, as papyrus’ brother, i’m the most qualified of anyone to talk about how great he is. so, uh... guess i’ll tell ya what he does for me. he tries. he doesn’t make anything easy for me; he’d have it in him to be my carer, but he pushes me to do things for me. he’ll do everything that i need him to, but he’ll only do it if i actually can’t; if i can do it, he’ll push me to do it instead.”

There was something special about the way sans spoke; the room felt brighter as he spoke, and his judgement could only be described as comforting to listen to.

“so, uh, as far as the royal guard goes... guess that shows how dedicated he is to what’s important to him. plus, he’s the coolest monster in the underground. if anyone has it in them to be a symbol for the best that monsters have to offer, it’s definitely my bro.”

Papyrus was definitely becoming emotional following Frisk and sans’ comments, but he kept quiet. He could thank them when the ceremony was over!

Asgore stood by Frisk and sans, motioning to them as he spoke.

“Frisk and sans have stood as witnesses, to testify to your greatest qualities. Do you agree that their testimonies are honest, and are not embellishments in your favour?”

Though he was holding himself together, he did choke for a moment before answering.

“I DO.”

“Very good. Frisk, sans, you may be seated. Finally, the current members of the Royal Guard shall welcome you, before your captain closes the ceremony.”

The dogs and the Hotland guards each stood up, forming a line by Papyrus. One by one, they stood in front of Papyrus, genuflected and returned to their seats. Before returning, Doggo grinned at him, muttering “’bout time!”.

Finally, Undyne stood before him. He could see that _she_ was getting emotional, which made it much more difficult for him not to do so.

“Papyrus the Skeleton. You have passed every written examination, showing that you have sufficient knowledge of our laws, culture and ways of life. Under my training and guidance, you have shown yourself to be exemplary in battle; your physical strength, your tactical mind and your adaptability on the battle field show that you are more than capable of handling combat, should the need arise.”

She cleared her throat, and no one missed her poor attempt to surreptitiously wipe her eye.

“However, above all, you have shown yourself to be a shining example of goodness in your community: your willingness to help those in need without expectation of reward, your patience in dealing with complicated issues and your willingness to extend kindness to every soul prove you to be a pillar of your community.”

He was shaking. He didn’t even realize that he was holding his breath. At Asgore’s request, he genuflected.

“During this ceremony, it has been made clear that you have every necessary qualification, both in terms of your character and the opinion that your people have of you. As such, I, Undyne, Captain of the Royal Guard, accept that you- that you are perfectly suited for the role you have accepted.”

Undyne cleared her throat once more. Papyrus quickly dabbed at his own eyes while she collected herself. She motioned for him to stand, which he did- perhaps a little too quickly, though no one commented.

“It is my great honour to welcome you, Papyrus the Skeleton, as the newest member of the Royal Guard. With this, your induction ceremony draws to a close.”

The audience applauded, and he was sure that he heard cheering from the back seats. All sense of decorum forgotten, he let his emotions go; he cried, and pulled Undyne into a crushing hug. He thanked her profusely, though he doubted that much of it was coherent.

She hugged him back, quickly releasing him. As the ceremony had concluded, she was able to speak freely.

“I know that there isn’t really a Royal Guard any more, but... well, technically, there wasn’t an official disbanding of the Guard. I checked over the legal mumbo jumbo and, turns out, as long as I met all the requirements, I could still give you your spot, even if there isn’t really much for you to do.”

Although she had been elated up to that point, she put a hand on his shoulder and spoke in a more serious tone to him.

“Papyrus... you deserve this. I did a lot of thinking, and this was long overdue. Even if it’s pretty much only a title at this point, it’s a title that you earned a long time ago.”

She shook his hand in a dignified manner, before immediately snorting. He laughed in turn; given the fact that she was technically already his boss anyway, and the fact that the Royal Guard was no longer active, it wasn’t like this would change their dynamic anyway.

Following the very same thought process, Undyne grabbed him and held him over her head.

“UNDYNE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”

“Papyrus, you JUST had your induction ceremony. You know what THAT means?”

He suspected that the question was rhetorical, a suspicion that was confirmed by her running towards the kitchen, still holding him above her head.

“IT’S TIME FOR THE POST-CEREMONY PARTY!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, y'know how I've been saying "Sorry, this chapter was supposed to be a part of a longer chapter"? Inversion this time! The ceremony and the party were originally supposed to be one chapter, but I decided to commit to the ceremony properly, and it ended up fitting better as its own chapter.
> 
> I don't actually know much about these kinds of ceremonies, so I doubt it's very true to life in any sense, but it felt fitting for the world of Undertale. To be a member of the Royal Guard is one of the most prestigious titles that we know of in-universe, so I'd imagine that there would be a lot of pomp and circumstance in the induction.
> 
> I feel like I should address the way I wrote Frisk here; the way they communicate isn't totally clear in-game. Some believe them to use sign language, others believe that they speak etc. I decided that the best way to do it was to leave it to the reader; if you think they spoke, they spoke. If you think they used sign language, they used sign language.
> 
> If anyone is wondering why Grillby is there, it's not based on anything in canon; I just have it in my head that he served in the War. It's probably the biggest headcanon I've included in the fic, but given the lack of importance in the overall narrative, and the fact that it isn't contradicted in canon, I felt happy enough including it.
> 
> Final note, I wanted to have RG01 and RG02 speaking in this chapter but it just couldn't happen naturally. Sorry lads, maybe in the next one.


	17. Welcoming the Watchman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As an official member of the Royal Guard, it's time for the party, and for Papyrus to chat with all of the guests!
> 
> He's in for a fun time!

As he could have expected, Undyne didn’t put him down until they were back in the kitchen. Once there, she dropped him, telling him to “Enjoy the party, dork!”, before making her way... somewhere. His sense of direction had yet to readjust.

Although some of the audience followed them in, some opted to stay in the living room or head outside for the time being. Given how cramped it could get, he supposed that was for the best.

Once he had regained his footing, he was hoping to ask Undyne and Asgore how the ceremony had come about. He didn’t get the chance, as he felt five bodies tackling him to the floor.

“Congratulations, Papyrus!” “Knew ya could do it, bud!” “Well done, friend!” “(Pant, Pant!)” “BARK!”

Although somewhat dazed by the unexpected force of the canine unit, Papyrus thanked them for the affectionate gesture as they helped him up.

“Well done, Papyrus! Why, when we heard the news...” Dogamy began.

“...we were overjoyed! You’ve certainly earned it!” Dogaressa finished.

Greater Dog continued barking happily, while Lesser Dog continued to pant, vibrating intensely on the spot. Papyrus was, admittedly, a touch concerned with the not insignificant possibility that they’d jump him again; he, of course, would never turn down such affectionate gestures, but he’d rather not hit the floor again today.

Thankfully, they stayed put, and Doggo stepped over, clapping Papyrus on the back of the skull. Papyrus assumed that it was supposed to be a clap on the back, and Doggo’s aim had just been a little off.

“Hah, knew ya had it in ya! Soon as Undyne called, all I could think was how she shoulda done this years ago! Still, better late than never, right, pal?”

Once again, Doggo was calling him ‘pal’. This time, though, there was no room for ambiguity; it was simply a kind gesture from someone that liked him. Papyrus smiled back.

“EXACTLY RIGHT, PAL! IT’S A SHAME THAT WE WON’T BE WORKING TOGETHER, BUT I’M STILL PROUD TO CALL YOU MY ASSOCIATES!”

Doggo scoffed. “Yeah, sure, we won’t be working together. Since you’re a Royal Guard member, we’re getting you in on poker nights!”

Papyrus, though appreciating the gesture, did have to admit...

“I... DON’T ACTUALLY KNOW HOW TO PLAY POKER.”

Dogaressa looked over to Dogamy. “It’s relatively easy to pick up, isn’t that right, dear?”

He looked back to her and nuzzled her nose. “Quite simple! A night or two and you’ll have the hang of it!”

Doggo chuckled, before flashing a toothy smile at Papyrus. 

“Yup. Real easy to get into. You’re officially one of us now Papyrus, we’re not gonna let you away with not knowing the rules of poker!”

Greater Dog gave an affirmative bark, while Lesser Dog... Papyrus could have sworn his neck extended for a minute. Papyrus figured himself to be so overjoyed that his vision was playing tricks on him.

“THANK YOU ALL! IN THAT CASE, I’D BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO JOIN YOUR ‘POKER NIGHTS’!”

“Knew we’d get you on board! We’ll add you to our group chat on the Undernet later, much easier to figure out people’s schedules there. For now, we’ll let you mingle with everybody and, uh... me might have to check on Endogeny. Don’t know how much Toriel would appreciate it if they got excited and trailed froth everywhere...”

Papyrus thanked them again and was left by himself for a moment. He marvelled at the idea that he was being added to a group chat; being included in decision making and event planning!

His marvelling didn’t last long, as he was approached by two figures clad in heavy armour. They held hands as they approached, and waved at him.

“Hey there! You’re the Snowdin patrol guy, right?”

“...glad to see you finally made it on board.”

Papyrus shook hands with them; he didn’t know them too well, but they seemed like nice fellows.

“WELL, AS UNDYNE MENTIONED TO ME, THE ROYAL GUARD HAS VERY LITTLE TO DO NOWADAYS, SO WE PROBABLY WON’T BE WORKING TOGETHER TOO MUCH. THAT BEING SAID, IT WOULD BE LOVELY TO HANG OUT WITH YOU IN A LESS FORMAL CAPACITY!”

The two looked at each other before looking back to Papyrus. Given the massive helmets covering their faces, it was difficult to tell what they were thinking.

“Well, we show up to the canine unit’s poker nights every now and again! Plus, we’re working on a community garden with King Asgore, if you’d like to join in on that?”

“...you’ll probably be added to the patrol roster, too. Might see each other in work.”

“A COMMUNITY GARDEN DOES INDEED SEEM LIKE AN ENJOYABLE PROJECT TO BE A PART OF! BUT... WHAT’S THIS ABOUT A PATROL ROSTER? I THOUGHT THE ROYAL GUARD HAD UNOFFICIALLY DISBANDED?”

Once again, the two shared a glance. The dragon had stopped in his tracks, though the rabbit didn’t seem too fazed by it. After a moment, the rabbit realized that the dragon was legitimately agitated; after taking a moment to soothe him by rubbing his hand, the dragon calmed down and the rabbit turned to face Papyrus.

“Yeah, so... more or less, the Royal Guard disbanded. Still, we have duties to uphold; mainly the whole ‘cultural integrity’ thing. See, now that everyone has left the Underground, there’s no one around to manage the place. Lots of, like, history and stuff to be preserved, gotta make sure nothing gets vandalized... just small stuff to, uh, ‘preserve the justice, prosperity and cultural integrity of your people’.”

“...two members, twice a week. Undyne will give you the details, I’m sure. We’d best leave it to her.”

The dragon seemed rather keen to get away. Papyrus figured that he just didn’t want to say the wrong thing again; he could relate to that.

“VERY WELL! IT WAS NICE TO SPEAK WITH YOU, I HOPE THAT THE TWO OF YOU ENJOY THE REST OF THE PARTY!”

They thanked him, and headed out into the garden. Papyrus wondered if they were looking for a quiet moment or if, perhaps, they wanted to try Frisk’s puzzles. He didn’t ponder for too long; he figured that he’d be speaking to a great many people that night. While the odds were getting lower that anyone would knock him to the floor again, he still figured that he’d have an easier time if he was the one approaching.

Back in the living room, he found Gerson, Grillby and Frisk. It seemed that they were attempting to play his game of ‘pin the skull on the skeleton’: Frisk was blindfolded, while Gerson and Grillby attempted to guide them to pinning the skull. Given the fact that Grillby was communicating by tapping Frisk on the shoulders instead of speaking, and Gerson was too far from the board to see it properly, it was going about as well as could be expected.

Papyrus decided not to interrupt, letting the game play out. Gerson cheered and Grillby patted Frisk on the back. They removed their blindfold, and clapped cheerfully. Papyrus considered telling the group that the head was upside down, or that they had pinned it to the back of the board rather than the front, but he didn’t have the heart to tell them.

Frisk was the first to notice him; they ran over and gave him a hug. He thanked them for their kind words at the ceremony, claiming them to have been a fantastic witness. Grillby nodded to him, and Gerson waved him over.

“Well, hey there, rookie! Congrats on the promotion! Wahaha! Ya got real lucky with the ceremony, I’ll tell ya that much: seein’ as Grillby doesn’t talk, Alphys panics and I could barely remember my lines, it was nothin’ short of a miracle that we got ya through it!”

Although that news was somewhat... disconcerting... Papyrus found himself with a warmth in his chest. The fact that everyone had gone to so much effort for him really did mean the world to him.

“Aww, snap outta the daydreams, sonny! Yer far too young to be gettin’ lost in yer head!”

Frisk giggled, and even Grillby looked to be stifling a laugh. Papyrus laughed with them, before Gerson turned back over to the party game.

“Sure the Guard was your calling? Think ya mighta had a future in art! Wahaha!”

Papyrus looked back at his home-made skeleton. Somehow, not only had some paint trailed from the left eye to the mouth, some of it had trailed _up_ from the right eye to the top of the skull. He could have sworn that it hadn’t looked like that by the time the paint had dried...

“Say, didja have a base fer this fella? Me n’ Grillby were lookin’ at it, seems mighty familiar.”

What had he based it on? ...He didn’t actually know, if he was honest.

“I’M... NOT ACTUALLY TOO SURE. I WANT TO SAY THAT I JUST PAINTED WHAT WAS IN MY HEAD, BUT I THINK I UNDERSTAND THE FAMILIARITY YOU SPEAK OF.”

After a moment’s contemplation, Gerson shrugged.

“S’ppose there’s no use worryin’ about it, then! Maybe I’m just misrememberin’, looks neat all the same!”

Frisk nodded along, commending Papyrus for his efforts. They thanked him for making the decorations in the first place, telling him that they were all very well made.

“WHY, THANK YOU, FRISK! AS AN OFFICIAL MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD, IT’S ONLY NATURAL THAT I GIVE MY ALL TO EVERYTHING THAT I DO!”

They snickered and gave him a thumbs up. Gerson and Grillby gave him a pat on the shoulders, before Gerson told him to “Skedaddle and impress everyone with his new title while it was still new!” Thinking Gerson’s advice to be wise, he went to do just that.

He walked through the kitchen out to the back yard. The two armour clad guards from earlier were sitting by Toriel’s flowerbed, seemingly having a quiet discussion. Nearby, Asgore stood with Monster Kid. Asgore seemed to be doing his best to keep up as Monster Kid was excitedly talking about something. It was only natural for Papyrus to say hello.

“-coolest?! Like, I always thought that being able to beat up the bad guys was what made someone cool, but he tries to stop people from BEING bad guys by being friends with them!”

“HELLO, MONSTER KID! HELLO, YOUR MAJESTY!”

Monster Kid froze in place, their face scarlet as they turned to see Papyrus. Asgore welcomed him warmly, pulling him into a quick hug.

“Now, Papyrus, while I do appreciate your professionalism, I hope that you’ll still refer to me as Asgore! Our friendship shouldn’t change simply because of your title, after all!”

Papyrus agreed wholeheartedly.

“RIGHT YOU ARE, ASGORE! SO, HOW ARE THE TWO OF YOU DOING?”

“Ah, we’re doing quite well! Kid here was unable to attend the ceremony, due to the specifics surrounding those in attendance, but they were quite excited to come to the party!”

Kid laughed awkwardly, clearly embarrassed. They tried to play it cool, though they made very little attempt to hide their enthusiasm.

“Y-yeah! I think you’re really cool! Frisk and I became friends when they were in the Underground, and when they were on their adventure, I... learned a lot. Like, yo, I found out a lot about what’s right and, um, not right. When I found out about you, and how you can end a fight as soon as someone reaches 1HP... it changed EVERYTHING!”

They continued for a few minutes, rambling about how cool Papyrus was, and they wanted to be like him when they were older. They seemed to have said the last part without thinking, as they once again turned scarlet after saying it.

“So, um, yo... uh... my parents will probably be like, super mad if I don’t call them and stuff... I gotta go, bye! It was cool seeing you, congratulations on being a Royal Guard!”

They ran before he could comment. He was surprised to find out that someone looked up to him; it was quite a humbling thought. He couldn’t help but think of another young idealist, waiting outside for an entire night to meet _their_ idol...

“Ah, to be young again. How has your experience been with the party, Papyrus? I hope that you’re enjoying yourself?”

Truthfully, Papyrus didn’t actually have an answer for him. It wasn’t that he was, in any way, having a bad time, but... he had achieved his dream, become involved with projects, solidified friendships, found out that someone looked up to him...

“...I MUST ADMIT, IT’S A LITTLE OVERWHELMING! NOT IN A BAD WAY, BUT IT’S EVEN GREATER THAN I HAD EXPECTED!”

Asgore laughed, before shaking his head and putting a friendly hand on Papyrus’ shoulder.

“Yes, I suppose that makes sense. I truly am happy for you, Papyrus; you and Undyne repaired your friendship, your car seems to be in working order and you’re an official member of the Royal Guard! It is quite inspiring, I must say. In fact, as the ceremony has ended... should we commemorate the moment?”

As he said that, he took out his phone. Papyrus found himself stifling a laugh, a very rare occurrence; he appreciated Asgore’s enthusiasm, and didn’t want to come across as making fun of him, especially when he was making the offer in earnest.

“OF COURSE, ASGORE!”

The two posed for a selfie, and Asgore quickly began to add some tags. After deliberating on whether or not he should tag everyone present at the party (Which Papyrus strongly encouraged him not to do, if only because he probably wouldn’t have the space), he posted it on the Undernet.

“I suppose it would be best if I left you to the festivities; I actually, er... must be leaving. I just couldn’t do so without seeing you beforehand!”

Papyrus didn’t miss his quick glance back towards the house.

“Still, if you’re free on Tuesday, I’d love to invite you to a project I’ve been working on...”

Asgore filled him in on the details surrounding the community garden that the other guards had mentioned. Papyrus agreed that it would be great fun, and promised to meet him there.

Papyrus followed Asgore out to the front garden and saw him off. He turned back to go inside, and saw Alphys chatting with two people by the porch. He went over to say hello; he didn’t know who the purple cat was, but he _did_ recognize the alligator! Alphys noticed him, and called him over.

"H-hey, Papyrus! Congratulations on your n-new position!"

She gave him a quick hug, before stepping back to introduce her friends.

“THANK YOU, DR. ALPHYS! AND IT’S NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN, BRATTY! I’M AFRAID I DON’T KNOW YOU, MISS...?”

“Like, Catty. So, you know Bratty?”

Completely missing the wicked smirk on her face, or Alphys’ snickering, he explained that they had met at the supermarket a few days ago. One Alphys had calmed down, she spoke up:

“Y-yeah, she mentioned it! I-I didn’t say anything, j-just in case... but now, since we know that it IS you... you two should h-hang out or something!”

He didn’t miss that Bratty’s face had gone red while the other two spoke. She held some of her curls in one hand as she glared at the two.

“It’s, like, cool, dude. I know you’re, probably, like, crazy busy, and that’s without the fact that you’re even in the Royal Guard now...”

“NONSENSE! I’D LOVE TO SPEND SOME TIME WITH YOU! I’D IMAGINE THAT YOUR WORKING SCHEDULE IS PROBABLY QUITE ERRATIC, SO I’LL JUST GIVE YOU MY PHONE NUMBER AND YOU CAN LET ME KNOW WHEN YOU’RE AVAILABLE! DOES THAT SOUND ALRIGHT TO YOU?”

She nodded profusely as he gave her a note with his phone number on it. As he did so, Catty and Alphys lost it. The two _howled_ with laughter, Alphys struggling to even stay standing. He tutted at their behaviour.

“OH, COME NOW! YES, I MAY BE A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD NOW, BUT I’M NOT SOME KIND OF CELEBRITY LIKE METTATON! I CAN GIVE SOMEONE MY PHONE NUMBER WITHOUT IT BEING A SHOW OF STATUS!”

His attempt to pacify the two didn’t work, only furthering their laughing fit.

“WELL, I’LL SEE YOU SOON, BRATTY! PLEASE TELL THESE TWO THAT I ALSO WISHED THEM WELL, ONCE THEY RECOVER!”

“S-see ya, dude! Definitely!”

He waved, before heading back inside. He heard Bratty yelling something at Catty and Alphys, though he couldn’t make out what it was. He shook his head and smiled; it was always nice to see Alphys laughing, even if the circumstances were somewhat strange.

Back in the living room, there were only two occupants; Toriel was sitting in her chair reading a book, and it seemed that Gerson had fallen asleep. Once Toriel noticed him, she put the book down and stood up, walking over to give him a hug.

“Ah, congratulations, Papyrus! I do hope that you’re having fun!”

He wanted to comment, but his gaze flitted towards Gerson. Toriel frowned, before she realized what was bothering him. She scoffed.

“Papyrus, dear, I’d say the world would have to be ending before we could wake him up!”

Well... he _did_ seem to be sound asleep. Papyrus entered the living room; he tried to stay relatively quiet, though, as Toriel said, Gerson didn’t stir.

“I AM, INDEED, HAVING A GREAT TIME! THANK YOU FOR HOSTING THE PARTY, TORIEL!”

“Oh, it’s nothing, Papyrus! I know how much this day means to you, and after all, you’re a part of our family! Of course we were happy to do this for you!”

He felt a familiar warmth in his chest at those words; it wasn’t _completely_ unexpected, given how close that their little group had gotten since they had left the Underground, but it was still something special to be told outright.

“I must admit, there is something quite... indescribable, seeing someone achieve their dreams. Sadly, it’s something that a teacher does not get to see too often; I get to see the dreams forming, but rarely get to see them achieved.”

She spoke with a bittersweet tone of voice; though there was an air of melancholy as she spoke, it was overpowered by the positivity in her voice.

“I hope you realize that, as a member of the Royal Guard, you will serve as an inspiration to others, Papyrus. People will look to you for wisdom, for advice, for help...”

The positivity began to ebb away as she continued; her tone became more grave as she continued.

“Papyrus, I have great faith in you. I know that, should any dangerous situations arise, you will do your best to help those that need you, but... just remember to take care of yourself too, alright, dear? You have people that love you, and no goal would be worth losing you. Do you understand?”

That was unexpected. She was deadly serious; he was tempted to point out that there was no fighting for anyone in the Royal Guard to be doing any more, but thought better of it. He didn’t want to dismiss her (admittedly valid) concerns for his well-being.

Plus, it seemed that she was speaking from experience. Not that it was any of his business to ask, but he had a feeling that, given the sense of urgency in her voice, her fears weren’t coming form nowhere.

“THANK YOU, TORIEL. YOU’RE QUITE RIGHT; IF I DON’T KEEP MYSELF IN GOOD CONDITION, I CAN HARDLY HELP ANYONE ELSE!”

She didn’t seem wholly satisfied (He figured that it would have been better not to focus on his ability to help people, but it was too late to rephrase), but she smiled regardless.

“I know that you will do an excellent job! I just hope that you don’t end up thinking the job to be a _royal_ pain!”

She chortled at her joke, which became full-blown laughter as Papyrus feigned outrage. As if on cue, a voice spoke from the doorway.

“c’mon. you woulda caught that one if you were on _guard_.”

Papyrus turned to scowl as sans stood in the doorway.

“THIS IS THE GREATEST DAY OF MY LIFE, MUST YOU DO THIS NOW?”

“hold on, bro. you can’t talk back to the queen. i could say i’ve _sen-treason_ committed.”

The two continued their onslaught, Papyrus feigning more outrage as the two kept their act up. It was quite difficult not to laugh, but he managed. Between Toriel’s laughter and Papyrus’ exaggerated reactions, Gerson roused from his slumber.

Their antics were enough to rouse Gerson from his slumber.

“Hnn? Musta dozed off, eh? We break the barrier yet?”

Toriel and Papyrus froze, before Gerson burst into his own round of laughter.

“Sorry, rookie, couldn’t help m’self! Still... might be best for this old geezer to make his way home, can’t keep up with the party life like you youngsters!”

Though Toriel and Papyrus hadn’t been quite as amused, sans laughed at Gerson’s joke.

Toriel offered to escort Gerson home. She congratulated Papyrus once more, giving him another hug and asking him to _please_ keep her words in mind. Once she was satisfied that he understood her message, she walked Gerson out, leaving Papyrus alone with sans.

“happy with how today went?”

“OF COURSE, SANS! I’VE ACHIEVED ALL OF MY DREAMS, AND... I MUST ADMIT, I GREATLY APPRECIATED YOUR TESTIMONY.”

“thanks, made it myself.”

Papyrus actually snorted at that one; sometimes sans would catch him completely off-g... _unaware_ , and he’d laugh before he could pretend he didn’t enjoy it.

“welp, never really been a party kinda guy myself. i’d offer to meet ya at home, but... well, for one, grillby did the catering. ‘sides, i got a feelin’ that you still have some unfinished business, don’t think i should leave ‘til you got it sorted... just a feelin’.”

He winked before sauntering out of the room. Now alone, Papyrus was left completely to his own thoughts. He had to acknowledge that sans had a point about unfinished business...

While he had enjoyed talking with everyone, he couldn’t help but notice that someone was conspicuously absent, one of the people he was hoping to speak to more than anyone.

He couldn’t let today end without talking to her!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW. So this was, again, originally a lot shorter. The I end up with over 3,000 words because I wanted to be thorough. So, the party continues for yet another chapter!
> 
> Congratulations on RG01 and RG02 for getting speaking roles this time. Love those guys, couldn't let the fic go without giving them something!
> 
> I'll throw in that Alphys probably has been fairly out of character, but I like to think that Bratty and Catty's influence (or, just Catty's in this case) would allow for a totally different side to her, it's just hard to give that much room to breathe since they're not really the focus of the fic.
> 
> Also, Monster Kid wasn't supposed to be in the chapter at all. He ended up being there partially because I thought it would be weird if Bratty and Catty were the only guests not at the ceremony, and partially because I just thought it'd be a nice little inclusion.
> 
> Despite it being one of the longest chapters, I don't have too much to say on this one, so hope you're enjoying it! I've also decided not to bother trying to figure out how many chapters are left; some ideas end up not panning out at all, others come to me and extend the fic, others start off simple and end up expanding like crazy. I don't know how far I'm going to develop things before the end at this point!


	18. Reassuring Rendezvous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus needs to talk to the one person he missed at the party.
> 
> What could she be up to?

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to party or anything; she was ALWAYS down for a fun time!

It was just... well, anyone could get tired. She had put a LOT of work into making sure that everything went according to plan. A quick nap couldn’t hurt! ...Well, maybe she shouldn’t be napping in someone else’s bed, but it would only be for a few minutes, so it was fine.

That was her logic, anyway. The fact that a concerned Papyrus was hovering over her when she woke up clued her in to the possibility that her nap hadn’t gone according to plan.

“UNDYNE? ARE YOU ALRIGHT? I DON’T WANT TO BOTHER YOU, BUT YOU’RE MISSING OUT ON THE PARTY!”

“C’mon Papyrus, it’s been like, what, twenty minutes?”

“...UNDYNE, YOU’VE BEEN ASLEEP FOR FOUR HOURS.”

One thing she liked about Papyrus; he understood her ways of reacting to certain information. For example: he knew to stop hovering before telling her what could be considered shocking information. Had he stayed where he was, he would likely be on the floor with a fractured skull, as she bolted upright without warning.

“FOUR HOURS?! I mean, I guess it could have been worse, but geez... good thing you woke me up!”

She stretched before sitting in a more comfortable position at the edge of the bed. She considered standing up and heading downstairs with Papyrus, but... it could wait if he could.

She prompted him to sit beside her, which he did. There was a comfortable silence between the two, before Undyne broke it with a sigh.

“So, how’s it feel?”

She couldn’t help but feel dumb after saying it; if she really had been asleep for four hours, he’d probably been asked the same question by everyone that had been there. Still, he didn’t seem to mind.

“IT’S BEEN EXTRAORDINARY, OF COURSE, BUT... WHY NOW, UNDYNE? NOT THAT I’M NOT GRATEFUL, I’M EXTREMELY GRATEFUL! BUT...”

“...it looks like I’m only doing it to get back in your good books?”

He recoiled at her suggestion. Maybe she shouldn’t have been quite as blunt about it, but it needed to be addressed for her sake as much as his.

“N-NO! THAT’S NOT WHAT I WANTED TO IMPLY AT ALL!”

“...Fair enough. Still, I wouldn’t blame you if you did think that way. I mean, it _was_ the fight that put everything into perspective for me.”

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN?”

She had to admit, she figured it would be a week at least before this conversation came up. In fact, she knew there’d be a strong possibility that it would come up tonight, and she had no intention of following it up. Maybe it was just because she was tired, and wasn’t thinking as clearly as she could be.

Or maybe it was because she was still afraid that there could be a rift between them. That all it would take was one wrong notion to ruin everything.

“I... thought a lot about you wanting to be in the Royal Guard. Papyrus... I’ve known you deserved it for a long time. Seriously, you don’t know how long I spent coming up with justifications for why I couldn’t let you in.”

“I KNOW, UNDYNE, I-”

“No, Papyrus. You don’t.”

She let herself collapse back onto the bed, staring at the ceiling. She hit the bed with a resounding thump. She really _was_ exhausted.

“You know about why I didn’t let you in. What you don’t know is how it _felt_. The guilt of it was so HEAVY. Like... I tried everything to stop it. Tried getting you to give up, tried making the Royal Guard look less appealing... none of it worked. You worked hard every day to achieve your dream, and I was the one standing in your way. Because I was afraid. Then I had the nerve to call anyone else the enemy of people’s hopes and dreams.”

“UNDYNE!”

He was worried. Of course he was, he was Papyrus. But she needed to say this.

“Relax, this isn’t going anywhere bad. I just... need to say this. And I think you need to hear it, too.”

She quickly glanced over to him. He looked unsure, but didn’t stop her from continuing.

“There was ALWAYS an excuse. How you couldn’t handle it, or ‘what if you died’, or how you’d lose hope if you ended up hating it. But... there were times when I hated myself over it. It got... really bad, at times.”

He took her hand in his. He still said nothing, but he was trying to be supportive.

“I... look, none of this is what I’m actually trying to say. What I want to say is WHY it was eating me up so bad. And the reason is because you deserved it, Papyrus. Every word of what I said in that ceremony was true.”

She felt his hand tremble as she said that. She gave it a squeeze before continuing.

“After our fight, I... had to rethink things. Mainly why I was so desperate not to tell you the truth. In the end, that ended up being stupid, obviously.”

“NOT STUPID. YOU MADE SOME MISTAKES, AS DID I.”

She didn’t fight him on it. At best, it would just come to a standstill where she pretended to agree that he was right. At worst it would sour the point of what she was trying to say.

“Thing is... with that reason out of the way, I started to think about it again. Once we’d patched things up, it just... came to me, y’know? Like, this was the PERFECT time for it! We were friends again, there was no reason not to...”

She trailed off. She knew where she was going with this, she just didn’t really know how to get to the point.

“Look, you know I’m not great with this stuff, so I’ll just cut to the chase. I know how suspicious this whole thing looks: me setting this up straight after patching up a fight. Obviously it looks like I’m just sucking up. But I swear, that’s not it! I realized for sure that you deserved it, alright?”

She sat up and looked him dead in the eyes.

“So don’t let ANYTHING take away from it. You EARNED this a long time ago. This is YOUR achievement. I know I should have given it to you sooner, but I can’t fix that.”

He’d just about had enough it seemed, as he pulled her into a hug. She returned it, the two staying that way for a minute or so. He pulled back with a wide smile on his face.

“I KNOW I’VE EARNED IT, UNDYNE! I KNOW THAT I’M THE BEST THAT THE ROYAL GUARD HAS TO OFFER!”

She guffawed. She was going to play along and throw in some praise of her own, but he started again before she could.

“AND DO YOU KNOW WHY I’M THE GREATEST THAT THE ROYAL GUARD HAS TO OFFER?”

“Uhh... ‘cuz you’re the Great Papyrus?”

“NO! WELL, THAT _IS_ AN EXCEEDINGLY IMPORTANT PART, BUT...”

He looked away from her, gaze turning towards the window.

“I’M THE BEST THAT THE ROYAL GUARD HAS TO OFFER BECAUSE I HAD THE GREATEST TEACHER. A TEACHER THAT STOOD BY ME, AND ALWAYS HELPED ME TO REACH MY FULLEST POTENTIAL! A TEACHER THAT TAUGHT ME ABOUT HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO BE ONESELF! A TEACHER THAT WAS ALWAYS THERE FOR ME, AND WOULD NEVER SHY AWAY FROM HELPING ME, NO MATTER WHAT I NEEDED!”

...Damn, he was good at that. She felt herself getting choked up once more; it was a lot more embarrassing, as this was the first time lately where Papyrus wasn’t also getting choked up at the same time. He was speaking with pure confidence.

“AND DO YOU KNOW WHO THAT AMAZING, HEROIC, STRONG-WILLED TEACHER IS?”

“Papyrus...”

“NO, PAPYRUS IS THE STUDENT! SO THE TEACHER IS...”

He wasn’t going to let her away with it, was he? A few nudges to the ribs with his elbow signalled that no, he wasn’t. She felt a smirk that she couldn’t stop, before answering.

“It’s me, Undyne.”

He looked around the room. He then placed a hand up to where his ears would be if he had any.

“I’M SORRY, UNDYNE, DID YOU HEAR SOMETHING? BECAUSE I DIDN’T HEAR ANYTHING!”

...Oh, he didn’t just do that. If that was the game he was going to play, it was ON.

“I SAID, IT’S ME, UNDYNE!”

“EXACTLY! AND WHAT ARE YOU, UNDYNE?”

He was definitely pushing it. He wasn’t going to get a noogie, but she had another fiendish idea in mind.

“I’M YOUR BEST FRIEND!”

“YES, YOU A-AAAAAAH!”

Feeling a burning passion igniting in her, she hoisted Papyrus up over her head once more. With the doubts receding in her mind, she was ready for some actual fun.

She carried Papyrus back down the stairs, back to the party. Or... what was left of it. She dropped him before taking a quick look around.

Most of the guests had left; sans and Alphys were chatting in the living room, where Frisk had fallen asleep on the couch. Alphys hadn’t noticed their entry yet, and continued the conversation.

“S-seriously, though. HOW did you m-manage to eat an entire t-tray full of food?”

sans shrugged, not commenting on Undyne and Papyrus’ arrival. That gave Undyne the opporunity to sweep Alphys from her chair and pull her into a hug.

Alphys yelped, though she relaxed into the embrace once she realized that it was Undyne. After their moment, the two pulled apart. Alphys quickly glanced over to Frisk, relieved that the child had not stirred.

“S-so... what’s the plan now?”

Undyne wasn’t really sure. She was planning on having some fun at the party with Papyrus to celebrate, but that was out the window.

“shame it’s all over. shoulda brought some food up with ya, it was great.”

Undyne glared at him. She hadn’t realized until he said it, but she was STARVING.

A lightbulb seemed to go off in Papyrus’ head.

“SAY, UNDYNE... WOULDN’T NOW BE A PERFECT TIME TO PREPARE MY FIRST MEAL AS A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD?”

She couldn’t think of a more perfect way to end the evening. She nodded enthusiastically, before Alphys sighed.

“I-I should come too. S-someone needs to have the fire extinguisher ready...”

sans didn’t move from his seat.

“someone’s gotta stay and watch the kid ‘til tori comes back. ‘sides, i already ate. have fun.”

Papyrus and Alphys headed out to his car. Undyne promised she’d be out in a minute, needing to check something before she left.

“So, let me get this straight: If I'm reading this right, you ate an entire tray full of food and set this entire conversation up so that I’d get the chance to cook with Papyrus since I missed the party. Just how much of this did you have a hand in?”

“no idea what you’re talkin’ about. i was hungry.”

She considered calling him out, but figured there was no point. He didn’t say anything more, and neither did she. She smiled to show that she appreciated the gesture, before following the others out to the car.

As they drove back to her and Alphys’ house, she felt as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Everything would work out just fine.

...

And, given the fact that they only ended up with a broken countertop and some singed wallpaper, their cooking experiment was also a success!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, the party ends after three chapters. That took longer than expected.
> 
> I'll clarify that I don't intend to clarify too much on everything brought up at the party; that'd be way too much extra to the fic. I have three specific points that I'll be going through now, just to wrap things up for Papyrus. I can't say for sure that they'll be three chapters, but I know how it's all going to pan out at least!
> 
> Unless I get an idea that really changes things, this will be the last Undyne chapter; I feel pretty happy with where I'm leaving the two, now we're just wrapping up the last few loose ends!


	19. The Conundrum of Clothing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus makes some plans, and wants to get himself in ship-shape!

Everything had been going swimmingly for Papyrus! His relationship with Undyne had not only been mended, but strengthened; the two were more open with each other, admitting to problems, likes and dislikes... they were far more honest and respectful of each other’s boundaries than they had been in the past.

On top of that, his new friends had been following through with their promises! He had scheduled a poker night with the canine unit for Thursday, he was going to be helping with the community garden on Sunday and had even spoken with Undyne about being added to the patrol roster that the Hotland guards had mentioned. Not only was he feeling accomplished, but he was building several relationships with new friends!

Yes, everything was going well for Papyrus!

His thoughts were interrupted by a call on his phone. The number wasn’t one that he recognized.

“HELLO? YOU’VE REACHED THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HOW MAY I HELP YOU?”

“Uhh... like, hey, dude!”

“AH, BRATTY, HELLO! HOW HAVE YOU BEEN?”

Papyrus, never one to turn down a conversation with a friend unless absolutely necessary, immediately engaged with the conversation. Surprisingly, despite being the one to make the call, Bratty was rather quickly cutting it short.

“Hey, like, sorry to be a downer, but I’m actually calling on break. My boss is, like, a TOTAL jerk when it comes to this junk, so I won’t be able to talk much longer.”

That was a shame. He was having a good time, and it seemed that she was, too! Still, he wouldn’t allow himself to be responsible for someone getting into trouble at work, not if he could help it!

“S-so, like, uh... I actually just called to see if you’re free on Saturday? Like, I thought we could, um... hang out and junk?”

“THAT SOUNDS GREAT TO ME! WHAT DID YOU HAVE IN MIND?”

There was a moment’s silence over the phone. He thought for a moment that she may have hung up, though a few “Ummm”s over the line, which he noticed were spoken away from the receiver, countered that thought.

“I hadn’t, like, actually planned that part? Once I found out I’d have the day off I figured I’d, like, check to see if you wanted to do anything.”

He couldn’t deny that he was surprised to have been such a high priority; it was quite an honour, if he was honest. Even if they didn’t plan anything too quickly, he’d be more than happy to hang out with such a good friend!

“I WOULD BE HONOURED TO HANG OUT WITH YOU ON SATURDAY! WE WON’T WORRY ABOUT THE SPECIFICS FOR NOW, WE CAN FIGURE SOMETHING OUT BEFORE THE DAY ARRIVES!”

He heard a brief, relieved sigh on the other end of the phone. It seemed that she had been somewhat nervous about the call; that made sense, he knew how difficult it could be to open conversation with a new friend!

“Like, awesome, dude! I’ll totally get back to you tonight, I’m super hyped! I’d like, love to keep talking and all, but my boss is in a wicked nasty mood so I should probably get back to work.”

“VERY WELL, BRATTY! WE CAN TALK LATER, I HOPE THAT THE REST OF YOUR DAY GOES WELL!”

“Thanks, Papyrus! You too, dude!”

Papyrus was quite happy with how things had gone; not only did he have another event planned with a friend, but Bratty seemed quite happy to be spending time with him!

Given how well things had been going as of late, he was brimming with even more enthusiasm than usual as he did some work around the house. He didn’t have all too much to do; keeping the house tidy wasn’t too difficult, and he had been informed both by sans and a local police officer that setting up traps around the house would be a bad idea. As such, he was left with very little to do after only a short amount of time.

He headed back to his room to see if there was much that he could do, before an idea came to him. Given how full his schedule was becoming, he’d want to look his absolute best! Well, except perhaps for the community garden, which might warrant some more disposable clothes, but for everything else, he’d want to look his best!

He looked into his wardrobe, and pulled out his battle body. Sure enough, the loose thread was still quite prominent. He considered just doing a quick patch job himself, but he wasn’t wholly confident in his ability to sew. Not that he thought himself to be bad at it, not at all, but... he didn’t want to risk making a mistake.

He had been missing his battle body, and he didn’t want to cause any harm to it, especially any permanent harm. He considered asking sans to help him with it, seeing as sans helped him to make it in the first place, but that didn’t see to be the best idea at the moment.

Which reminded him that he had to check on sans. He was a little under the weather, though it only made sense that he was, given the amount of grease that he ingested during the party. There was no point in saying “I told you so”, no matter how correct he would be, but he would be bringing this incident up in future should sans overdo it again.

He quickly grabbed a glass of water from the kitchen, before heading over to sans’ room. He knocked lightly on the door, but received no response. He knocked more heavily, and received a miserable groan in response. That was enough for him to assume that he was allowed to enter.

As could be expected, the lights were off. Papyrus knew that sans preferred the dark anyway, so he didn’t bother to switch them back on. The room, though poorly lit, was visible enough that he could leave the glass of water with sans without risking spilling it.

“HOW ARE YOU FEELING NOW, SANS?”

“like i don’t have a stomach”

“SANS, YOU DON’T HAVE A STOMACH!”

“exactly”

Papyrus entertained sans’ argument for a few more minutes, seeing as it was one of the few things that had gotten a positive response out of him since he had become unwell. Once it had petered out, Papyrus told sans that he’d bring up some soup for him in a little while (which he wasn’t very enthusiastic about, but he wasn’t saying no, which was about all Papyrus could ask for at that point).

Having made sure that sans was okay, and having a meal to prepare, he was absolutely ready to leave the room. Still, he found himself lingering.

“somethin’ on your mind, bro?”

“WELL... I KNOW THAT YOU’RE NOT FEELING TOO WELL AT THE MOMENT, BUT I WAS WONDERING IF YOU HAD ANY ADVICE WHEN IT COMES TO SEWING?”

“don’t?”

“SANS!”

“okay, okay. well, uh... not in much of a space to do anything myself, but maybe ask tori? she’s gonna stop by later anyway, so no harm in doin’ it then, right?”

He didn’t want to bother too much, but... if she was there anyway...

“RIGHT. THANK YOU, SANS! WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO BRING ANYTHING ELSE UP TO YOU?”

“nah. think i’ll just take a quick nap. well, maybe about four quick naps.”

“SO... ONE LONG NAP?”

“welp, if you insist.”

Before Papyrus could respond, sans was out like a light. He had to admit, as far as sans’ japes went, that one was actually pretty solid.

He left the room, and went to check that they still had their sewing equipment. Everything was still there from the time that they had made the battle body, which was a relief; if he was going to be asking Toriel for help, he didn’t want to be asking for supplies from her, too!

Once he had everything ready, it was just a matter of waiting for her to arrive. That, and steeling himself to be so upfront about asking for help. But after everything that had happened lately, he could surely just ask a friend for help with something simple?

...Well, it couldn’t hurt to go over what he’d say a few times, he supposed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today was a brutally long day at work, so I've had to chop a bit here and make this one a shorter, filler chapter. Tomorrow's chapter will be more reasonable!
> 
> Seeing as this one was just kind of a preamble for the next chapter, there's not too much to say other than "Sorry, sans".


	20. Sewing and Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toriel stops by to help with sans, and Papyrus hopes that she can help him with his battle body, too.
> 
> It dawns on him that, when someone helps others as much as she does, that doesn't make it easy for them to help themselves.

When Papyrus heard the knocking at the door, he still wasn’t completely confident in what he was going to ask. Even if it was just a small favour, neither the timing nor the favour itself seemed very fair. Still, once Toriel had checked on sans, he could ask her, and take note of how she reacted.

He answered the door, and there she stood in the doorway. She was carrying some tupperware containers with what he assumed were healthy meals, as well as a bag that he assumed was for her own belongings.

He let her in and, wasting no time, the pair headed up to sans’ room. He was, of course, still asleep. Toriel turned on the light and took a look around the room.

She didn’t seem very happy with what she was seeing.

“Papyrus, dear...? Is this sort of mess typical for sans?”

“I’M AFRAID SO. I’VE PUSHED HIM TO TIDY IT, BUT HE SEEMS COMFORTABLE WITH THINGS AS THEY ARE.”

She didn’t respond very positively to the answer, but, thankfully, dropped the issue. Even if the room seemed to be a chaotic mess, he knew that sans had a certain order to things. It was an order that Papyrus couldn’t understand, but it was there; he knew the exact contents of his trash pile, and wouldn’t be happy if things were moved around. He knew when the flashlight in his lamp did or didn’t have batteries, and he only wanted to have batteries in there when he needed them. There were some odd rituals that sans had about his room, and Papyrus had the feeling that Toriel’s idea of tidiness would definitely clash with those rituals.

She went over to sans’ bed and knelt beside him. She roused him from his sleep, and started rummaging through her bag when she got a confused mumble from him. She kindly asked Papyrus to heat up the contents of one of the tupperware containers, as well as to bring up a glass of water. 

Papyrus did as he was asked; once he returned with the food and water, he gave them to Toriel. She thanked him, before placing some sodium bicarbonate into the water and handing it to sans. Slightly more awake at this point, he drank it down before reluctantly taking the food. With some encouragement from Toriel, he ate a decent portion of it before handing it back, defeated.

Given how close the two were, Papyrus decided it would be best to give them some time alone. He excused himself, before taking the glass and the dish downstairs. He washed both, as well as the container the food had been in, and sat in the living room, watching some MTT-brand game shows to pass the time.

Soon after, he heard some laughter coming from sans’ room, so he could at least say that that was a good decision.

Eventually, he heard the door opening and closing, followed by Toriel coming back downstairs and joining him in the living room. Her expression told him that, at the very least, there wasn’t much to worry about as far as sans was concerned.

She explained that all he needed was to be careful with what he ate, and that she had made him promise to follow Papyrus’ instructions for eating – within reason. The fact that he had agreed seem odd – he had a tendency to shrug off promises for most people. Still, if it got him to take care of himself a little more, Papyrus wouldn’t object.

“Well, I suppose I probably should be going. If there’s any trouble, don’t hesitate to call me!”

“AH, TORIEL, COULD I, UM... ASK FOR YOUR HELP WITH SOMETHING?”

He couldn’t help but feel a little nervous; she was already helping sans, so to ask for this on top of that did seem excessive, but -

“Of course! What are you having trouble with, Papyrus?”

Oh. Well, that went better than expected. Not that he would have expected much of a negative response from her, but she didn’t seem put out, which he was glad to see.

“WELL... MY BATTLE BODY WAS DAMAGED A WHILE AGO, BUT I DON’T HAVE TOO MUCH EXPERIENCE WITH SEWING. SO, I WAS WONDERING, GIVEN MY INEXPERIENCE WITH SEWING, AND THE FACT THAT SANS ISN’T IN A POSITION TO HELP ME, IF YOU, PERHAPS, MIGHT BE ABLE TO HELP ME?”

He conceded in his head that he probably should have just asked and not rehearsed that part. He hoped that the unnatural delivery wouldn’t make Toriel uncomfortable.

She simply smiled at him and nodded.

“Of course, Papyrus! I’d love to help!”

He quickly scanned her features, just to be sure that she was legitimately okay with helping him. He didn’t see any sign of discontent or weariness, so he smiled back himself.

“THANK YOU! I’LL JUST QUICKLY GO UPSTAIRS AND GET IT!”

He dashed up the stairs and retrieved his battle body before making his way back to the living room. Toriel seemed surprised by his speed, but quickly shrugged it off. As he had prepared the sewing equipment, they didn’t have to worry about getting any of it ready.

“Hmm... Papyrus, would you like me to teach you some of the basics of sewing? I’d always be willing to help, but I can’t help but notice that it has been a while since you last wore this... perhaps if you knew the basics, you could fix minor problems should they arise?”

“WELL... IF YOU’RE COMFORTABLE WITH TEACHING ME, I’D BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO LEARN!”

Appreciating his enthusiasm, she motioned for him to come closer. She took out a sewing needle, and began to explain what sewing actually entailed. He felt as though he understood it fairly well... though, admittedly, his confidence wavered when it came to actually putting it into practice on his battle body.

Still, he took her advice on board, and began to tidy up his battle body. He snipped the loose thread and began to work on the small tear, taking it slow to ensure that he didn’t make any mistakes. Once he had finished, he held his beloved outfit up to examine it.

He had to admit, he was quite happy with the result.

He wasn’t the only one; Toriel was beaming, and she clapped upon checking it herself.

“Well done, Papyrus! You’ve done an excellent job!”

After that, he felt much more relaxed; Toriel still didn’t seem to mind helping him, and now he didn’t have to worry about damaging his favourite outfit. He thanked Toriel for her help, and asked if she would like something to eat or drink before leaving.

“Ah, well... I suppose that there would be no harm in staying for a cup of tea!”

He, at an alarming speed yet again, returned his battle body to his room before heading down to the kitchen to make some tea for Toriel. He didn’t know what her preferences were, so he decided that it would probably be best to just bring the milk and sugar to her with it on a tray, along with some shortbread to go with it.

It wasn’t long before she was sipping at her tea, and it was then that it hit him that he didn’t really know much about her; he knew about her _in relation_ to other people: Asgore’s ex, Frisk’s mom, sans’... something, (he didn’t even know for sure what she was to sans!), but he didn’t really know much about her as an individual.

“SO, TORIEL, HOW HAVE YOU BEEN LATELY?”

“Oh, I’ve been quite well, Papyrus! How about you? Have you done much with the Royal Guard?”

Hmm. He never thought he’d be disappointed that someone had asked him how it felt to be in the Royal Guard, but there they were. Obviously, it wasn’t the question itself that was the problem; he could go on happily for hours about that. His issue was more with the fact that she had more or less dismissed his question; was she really just that content? Or was she hiding some problems of her own?

...Or, perhaps it simply wasn’t his business? They weren’t exactly close; as it stood, all he really was was sans’ brother.

“I HAVEN’T DONE MUCH YET, BUT WHO KNOWS WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS?”

She chuckled, before taking another sip of her tea. While she did so, he thought about conversation topics; he could ask about baking, but he wasn’t sure that would be a very sustainable conversation due to his lack of knowledge on the subject. He could ask about Frisk, but that would fall under the same problem of the conversation not actually being about her.

“HOW ARE YOU FINDING LIFE ON THE SURFACE?”

“Well, it certainly is... different. Still, even if there have been some difficulties, I think we’ve all adapted quite well!”

At first, he was shocked by her answer; he heard ‘different’ and assumed she was referring to preferring the Underground. Of course, he figured out what she meant almost right after that thought:

“OH, THAT’S RIGHT! YOU USED TO LIVE ON THE SURFACE BEFORE THE WAR! HOW HAVE YOU FOUND READJUSTING?”

She didn’t answer straight away. She deliberated on the topic, closing her eyes in thought. He began to wonder if perhaps this wasn’t the best avenue of discussion.

“Well... I have to admit, there are concerns that I have regarding humanity. I do not mean to imply that I think negatively of humanity as a whole, but... well, some humans really do look upon us negatively. It wouldn’t take too many prejudiced humans to seal us away again... or worse.”

He didn’t quite have a response ready for that. Luckily for him, she didn’t seem to have finished; she sighed, staring into her cup for a moment before continuing.

“Still... I do have hope for the future. Even if some humans have been hostile, a great number of them have welcomed us. There have been great efforts to co-operate, and for us to live alongside one another... I believe that, as long as we show our capacity for goodness, the majority of humans will do the same.”

She looked away from her tea, looking back to Papyrus. Though her tone was somewhat weary, she smiled nonetheless.

“I have hope that, this time, things will be better. That fears will be put aside on both sides, and that we can live together peacefully this time. My concerns have made readjustment... difficult, at times, but I have faith that, at some point, we shall all look back on these fears and wonder why we ever held them.”

She finished speaking, before a light shade of red covered her cheeks.

“Ah! I suppose I may have... overshared a little. I apologize, it’s just that... well, thinking about life on the surface before the war is something of a complicated subject.”

“THERE’S NO NEED TO APOLOGIZE WHATSOEVER, TORIEL! NOT ONLY IS YOUR VIEWPOINT QUITE INSPIRATIONAL, BUT I WAS SINCERE IN ASKING WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS WERE!”

She paused, before shaking her head.

“Of course you were, Papyrus. I’m... still getting used to such sincerity, if I’m honest. As the queen, I had to stifle many of my opinions; there is a certain lack of freedom that comes with royalty. When I... abdicated... I ended up almost completely alone, so there were very few people that I could speak to at all, let alone openly.”

Her smile dropped. She seemed quite unhappy with where her thoughts were going.

“It would have been nice, perhaps, to regain a more simple life back on the surface, but... even now, I still have to contend with the fallout of my actions. Be it the fact that I’m expected to have an integral role in the development of human-monster relations, or the fact that so many people think of me as unfit to be in that role due to my ‘abandonment of my own kind’, or even those who look into my history and deem me an unfit parent...”

She was definitely on the verge of something, but caught herself. She cleared her throat, before looking to Papyrus with a shameful expression.

“Ah, my apologies once again. I suppose that readjustment has not been the easiest for me. Not only due to all the complications, but also... getting used to being around people once again. Your brother was the only person I really talked to prior to Frisk’s arrival and, well... Frisk is my child. It would not be right for me to unload my problems on them, especially ones as complex as this.”

He couldn’t help but think the same; as he had learned, it was of the greatest importance for one to have an emotional outlet. Still, Frisk was only a child; given the amount of effort that they had gone through to save the monsters, it was clear that they had something of an unhealthy need to help others. Should Toriel mention this to them... Papyrus didn’t want to think of how that could complicate matters.

“IT CAN’T BE EASY TO LIVE LIKE THAT, TORIEL. YOU’RE VERY WISE NOT TO PLACE YOUR PROBLEMS ON FRISK, BUT... YOU NEED TO SHARE THEM WITH SOMEONE! GIVEN EVERYTHING THAT’S HAPPENED LATELY, I’VE LEARNED THAT BOTTLING UP YOUR FEELINGS WILL ONLY LEAD TO HURT.”

He had hoped that that would encourage her, but all she did was smile sadly and shake her head.

“Sadly, Papyrus, it is not always so simple; yes, that is quite important advice to follow, but... not everyone is allowed to follow it. Everything that I say falls under the scrutiny of others... should I voice my concerns to someone whose opinion of me turns negative... well, it would be quite easy for them to use what I say against me.”

Her sad smile turned to a sad frown. Her defeated expression, her slouched shoulders... everything about her manner in that moment spoke volumes; years of solitude, suffering in silence... no one to keep her company but children that she would lose and, if he understood her relationship with sans, a voice through a door.

“This is my burden to bear. Should it be my life that is ruined, I could accept that, but... it would no longer just be my life that would be at risk. I could lose custody of Frisk, harm could fall upon you or sans... no matter how difficult it may be, I can accept my situation to prevent such problems from arising.”

That was definitely unhealthy. Papyrus could admit that he wasn’t always the greatest for admitting to his problems, and also had the odd case of accepting unnecessary difficulties for the sake of others, but...

“THAT’S... AWFUL, TORIEL. I SIMPLY CANNOT ABIDE BY THAT!”

He stood up, feeling determined. He looked Toriel straight in the eyes with a confident expression; hers was one of shock, clearly not expecting much in way of a response.

“I UNDERSTAND YOUR CONCERNS, AND ADMIT THAT THEY ARE VALID... BUT! THAT DOES NOT MEAN THAT I WILL ALLOW THEM TO GO UNHEARD!”

He quickly glanced up towards sans’ room, before turning back to Toriel.

“SHOULD YOU EVER WISH TO SPEAK TO SOMEONE WHO YOU CAN GUARANTEE WILL NOT SHARE YOUR SECRETS... WELL, THERE ARE TWO PEOPLE THAT YOU CAN COUNT ON, AT LEAST! I KNOW THAT SANS WOULD NEVER TELL A WORD TO ANYONE IF YOU ASKED HIM NOT TO, AND... WELL, I WOULD ALSO BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO LISTEN!”

Although he did feel like his boisterous attitude would strengthen his point, he softened up towards the end of his impromptu speech.

“TORIEL... I UNDERSTAND THAT THIS IS DIFFICULT, PERHAPS MORE THAN I OR ANYONE ELSE WILL EVER UNDERSTAND, BUT... YOU CANNOT DO THIS ALONE. KEEPING IT IN WITH NO WAY OF RELEASING YOUR NEGATIVE EMOTIONS WILL ONLY LEAD TO YOU BEING HURT, OR HURTING SOMEONE ELSE. PLEASE, FOR YOUR OWN WELL-BEING, AT LEAST CONSIDER WHAT I’M SAYING?”

He hoped that he had gotten his point across clearly. Toriel’s shocked expression remained, which caused his confidence to waver; given the fact that they hardly knew each other, he realized that he could be coming on a little too strong.

Thankfully, she didn’t seem to see it as such. She once again smiled sadly, tears brimming in her eyes.

“Thank you, Papyrus. I will certainly take what you have said on-board.”

That wasn’t exactly an answer that filled him with confidence; in his own history, that usually meant “I agree, but I simply don’t have it in me yet to solve this”. Still, it was definitely a start! He didn’t expect her to open up to him too much, but with any luck, she’d at least say something to sans when he had recovered from his grease-induced sickness.

They sat in silence for a moment, before Toriel rose from her seat.

“Well, it was lovely to speak with you, Papyrus, but I suppose I had best be going. Thank you for having me, and please ensure that sans keeps up with his healthy options, at least until he has recovered!”

“IT WAS LOVELY HAVING YOU, TORIEL! YOU’RE WELCOME TO STOP BY ANY TIME! AND THANK YOU AGAIN FOR HELPING WITH MY BATTLE BODY!”

“It was no trouble at all, Papyrus!”

Toriel gathered her things and made her way to the door. She paused, as though there was something else that she wanted to say. She didn’t say anything, however, and simply waved before leaving.

Papyrus couldn’t help but feel sad for Toriel; the fact that she had no support network for so long, and even now had an extremely small support network... well, it was worrying. True, her support network did include sans, who was great at helping when _he_ was upset, but... he couldn’t imagine how lonely she was feeling.

Still, she knew now that he was open to being there for her; he didn’t know whether or not she was going to take him up on his offer, and even if she did, he knew that it would take some time before she became comfortable with the idea.

That was something he suspected she had in common with sans; despite how much they needed support, it took a great deal of encouragement before either would actually reach out for it. All he could do for Toriel was hope that either she reached out to him, or that his actions would inspire her to do so with sans.

For now, however, there was nothing he could do. All he could do for now was hope that he had gotten through to her.

He glanced once more to his brother’s door; he had enough experience with these situations to know that it probably wouldn’t be that easy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is a little late; busy day, and the chapter ended up being a lot more in-depth than I had anticipated.
> 
> The original plan was a simple little interaction between Toriel and Papyrus, but the more I thought about it... well, this is what happened instead.  
> She's quite a complex character; even if I have some issues with her, it's hard not to feel sorry for her. She's made some mistakes, sure, but every single one comes from either a place of reason or being placed into a cruel situation. Then there's the fact that she didn't have anyone to talk to; at the absolute best, she had some monsters that don't tend to offer much for conversation or... Napstablook. I can't imagine that Blooky would be the quickest to dive into deep conversation, or any conversation at all, really.
> 
> So, uh... given her situation and the fact that it's not really realistic to solve problems like this in a single conversation, especially with someone you don't actually know all too well, this one ended on something of a downer note. I hadn't intended to revisit Toriel and Papyrus' relationship, but... geez, I might have to before it ends, that'd be a pretty sad note to leave it on.
> 
> We'll see how it goes!


	21. Compulsory Counsel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus has no plans for the day; he's probably not going to do much before his hangout with Bratty tomorrow!
> 
> At least, until he gets a visit and learns that it might not be the hangout he expects...

While his schedule had been rather busy as of late, Friday was a blank space in his schedule.

Honestly, it was the first time in quite a while where he actually had nothing to do; no obligations, no plans, nothing that needed repairs... he had the day to himself!

Normally, on such a day, his first port of call would be to check on sans; both to ensure that he was in relatively good health and to see if he wanted to do anything. Today, however, sans was visiting Toriel; he had passed his greasy affliction and she had invited him over to celebrate.

Papyrus couldn’t help but hope that that wasn’t the only reason, and that she was going to broach the topic of healthy self-expression in some way, but he figured that it wasn’t really any of his business to interfere. He knew that they were very close, and if she’d speak openly about her problems to anyone, it would be to sans.

He was interrupted from his thoughts by a fierce banging on his door. Before he could reach it, the door fell and, of course, there stood Undyne, who was shocked about... something.

“PAPYRUS, OH MY GOD!”

He took the sight in for a moment, before Undyne looked down at the mess and apologized. She placed the door back into its normal spot before knocking at a more reasonable volume. Papyrus went over to open the door, which fell once more when he went to open it. There stood Undyne, expression unchanged.

“PAPYRUS, OH MY GOD! And, uh, sorry about your door.”

He cracked a smile, telling her that it was nothing to worry about (They had only been friends for about a week before he learned how to replace a door, and by their first month as friends he could do so with his eyes covered), before inviting her in. She walked into the living room and paced for a few minutes, before she whipped around to him.

“So when were you gonna tell me?!”

“UMM... TELL YOU WHAT, UNDYNE?”

“That you’ve got a DATE!”

She was quite enthusiastic, but... he really didn’t know what she was talking about. Once Undyne realized as much, she began to give off a more... frustrated vibe.

“Tomorrow? With one of Alphie’s friends?”

“...YOU MEAN MY HANGOUT WITH BRATTY?”

She stared blankly at him for a moment. Once she understood that he was serious, she facepalmed and began to laugh.

“FUHUHUHUH! Come ON, Papyrus! You don’t SERIOUSLY think it’s just a hangout, right?”

“WHAT MAKES YOU SO SURE THAT IT’S NOT?”

Once her laughter had subsided, she gave him a clap on the shoulder.

“Well, uh... let’s just say I have pretty good reason to believe that it’s more than a hangout. Or, at least, I’d be willing to bet that she thinks it is!”

What had given her that idea? He knew, of course, that he was quite charming; it wasn’t out of the question for people to like him like that. Still... how was it a date if neither person _asked_ the other to go on a date? Was there some sort of secret dating language that he had unwittingly stumbled upon? Had he given her any other signals that he was unaware of? Ten thousand different thoughts whizzed around his skull, before Undyne grabbed him.

“Geez, relax! It’s just a date, what’s the big deal?”

“YOU JUST KNOCKED MY DOOR DOWN OVER IT! WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT IF IT WASN’T A BIG DEAL?”

She glanced over to the fallen door, before looking back to Papyrus with a sheepish grin.

“Okay, uh... got me there. Like, in a way, it’s a big deal: it’s your first real date! That’s a huge milestone for a lot of people! So when I heard about it, I had to come over and see what was up! But as for the date itself? It’s just... well, a date! It’s nothing to be panicked about! Like, even if it DOES go belly-up, it’s not a big deal!”

That wasn’t the most comforting way of putting it, but he understood what she was trying to say. Still...

“I’M... NOT QUITE SURE IF I’M READY FOR THIS. I’VE THOUGHT ABOUT DATING BEFORE, BUT... THIS IS SO SOON! I’VE DONE NOTHING TO PREPARE FOR IT! IF NOT FOR YOUR VISIT, I WOULDN’T HAVE EVEN KNOWN THAT THIS _WAS_ A DATE!”

Things were becoming awfully complicated, awfully quick. What was originally going to be a simple hangout with a new friend had turned out to be a date. Should the date go well, he might end up in some sort of relationship, which brought its own host of confusions and questions, as well as being a commitment that he didn’t know if he was ready for. If it went poorly, he could hurt Bratty’s feelings, or even cause problems for Alphys and Undyne, not to mention all of the complications that that could cause...

A rough shake snapped him out of his distress. Undyne gave him a comforting look, before giving him as gentle a hug as she was capable of. She sat him down on the couch with a hand on his shoulder.

“Papyrus, this really isn’t that big of a deal, okay? Like, yeah, it’s exciting, but... it’s just a fun time with someone else that _could_ lead to you being more than friends. Or, it might not! Yeah, it’s... really confusing, especially at first, but you’ll figure it out as you go!”

“YOU MAKE IT SOUND SO EASY!”

“That’s because it IS! In fact, it’s pretty much the exact same as hanging out, just... it’s a little different, I guess?”

So, it was hanging out... except it also wasn’t? She was obviously trying to put him at ease, but... it wasn’t working. At all.

“PERHAPS IT WOULD BE EASIEST IF I WAS TO CONSULT MY DATING MANUAL...”

“...Dating manual? Should I even ask?”

Papyrus brought Undyne up to his room, and brought out his dating manual. She skimmed it, before immediately setting it aside.

“Yeah, uh... no. You don’t use a manual for dating.”

“WELL, HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW WHAT TO DO, THEN? GO IN BLINDLY AND HOPE FOR THE BEST?”

“Pretty much!”

He waited for her to elaborate. She sat there in silence, and it became clear that that was all he was getting out of her on that matter, so he pushed on with his doubts.

“UNDYNE, I... I KNOW NOTHING ABOUT DATING! HOW CAN THIS GO WELL IF I GO IN SO UNPREPARED?!”

She snickered at his response, before wrapping an arm around his shoulder. She leaned in close, as though she were telling him some kind of secret.

“Ya think Alphie and I had any idea what we were doing at first? Seriously, how long did it take for me to ‘fess up that I liked her? And even when we DID start dating for real... we were a MESS for months!”

“BUT YOU TWO ALREADY KNEW EACH OTHER EXTREMELY WELL! BRATTY AND I HAVE ONLY INTERACTED A FEW TIMES! WHAT IF IT TURNS OUT THAT I DON’T LIKE HER THAT WAY, OR SHE DOESN’T LIKE ME?”

“Yeah, that might happen, and if it does, no big deal! Papyrus, you don’t need to come out of this with an undying love in your soul; you just see if the two of you have a fun time, and if you do, you see if you wanna do it again! What’s so complicated?”

Was that seriously it? It made sense, but...

“IF THAT’S THE CASE, WHAT DIFFERENTIATES IT FROM HANGING OUT WITH SOMEONE?”

“I dunno... you’ll just know! Look, you’re getting super stressed about this, but you shouldn’t be! Just have fun, and see if anything happens!”

“ANYTHING LIKE _WHAT?!_ ”

He was getting frustrated. It felt as though they were just going around in circles. Undyne could see that, as she moved around to kneel in front of him.

“Papyrus, remember how, when I first started giving you duties in your training, you were super insistent that we had to patrol all of the Underground, including Hotland? Even though I said a million times that we could leave it to the guards there? What happened when I finally said ‘okay, fine, we’ll patrol Hotland’?”

“...ARE YOU REFERRING TO THE TIME I GOT STUCK FOR AN ENTIRE DAY ON ONE OF THE CONVEYOR BELTS WITH THE LASERS ON IT, AND YOU PASSED OUT TRYING TO GET TO ME?”

“That’s the one! Remember how I told you that going on that patrol was a terrible idea, but I went ahead with it anyway?”

“I REMEMBER. DR. ALPHYS RESCUED YOU AND HAD TO MANUALLY TURN OFF THE LASERS SO THAT I COULD LEAVE...”

“And when we met up again the next day, what did I tell you?”

“THAT EXPERIENCE IS THE BEST... TEACHER...”

Her explanation made sense. No matter how much he read on the subject, it was one that he couldn’t understand unless he actually went ahead with it. Of course, even if things did make a lot more sense following her lecture, he had to ask:

“WAIT, WHY DID YOU USE AN EXAMPLE OF SOMETHING BAD HAPPENING TO EXPLAIN HOW THIS WORKS?”

She scratched the back of her neck, taking a second to think as she did so.

“Uhh... didn’t think about that. Look, the main point I’m trying to get across here is that you’re getting worked up about this because you don’t understand it, but you CAN’T understand it unless you just DO it!”

He still had his doubts, but... he knew he could trust Undyne. If she believed that it would be okay, he’d believe in her. Still...

“OKAY, I TRUST YOU, UNDYNE. BUT... PERHAPS YOU COULD GIVE ME A FEW POINTERS? YOU KNOW, JUST A FEW BASIC IDEAS TO KEEP THINGS RUNNING SMOOTHLY?”

“NOW we’re talking!”

Since they had yet to actually figure out what they were going to do, he supposed that that would be a good place to start.

Undyne agreed, and they began to brainstorm possible date ideas.

“Well, I can say from experience that dinner’s definitely a bad idea for a date, unless you’re using it to cap the night off. Trust me, Papyrus, no matter how hot someone is, they’re gonna look dumb talking through a mouthful of buffalo wings.”

“THAT’S A VERY GOOD POINT! HOW ABOUT A MOVIE?”

“The whole point of going on the date is to get to know each other better! How are you gonna do that if you’re sitting in a movie theatre and not talking? Save that for later down the line if it comes to it!”

Well, that was... every idea that he’d had. He’d heard that ice-skating made for fun dates, but it wasn’t exactly the time of year for ice-skating. The only other knowledge he’d had of romance was from Mettaton’s shows, but he figured that the chances of an evil despot sealing her away in his dungeon were already quite low, so rescuing her from such a tyrant wasn’t a very reasonable dating scenario. He supposed he’d have to come up with something on his own.

An idea came to him; it seemed like a fun time, but he figured it best to float the idea by Undyne first. She thought about it; while she wasn’t leaping with enthusiasm, she wasn’t rejecting his idea either.

“That’s... well, gotta admit, I’d be down for that. I mean, it’s worth suggesting, worst she can do is say no, right?”

“RIGHT! SO, WITH THAT OUT OF THE WAY, WHICH DO YOU THINK IS MORE APPEALING, BONE COLOGNE OR MTT-BRAND ATTRACTION SLIME?”

The two spent the rest of their day having fun; they made silly plans for what Papyrus should wear, discussed ludicrous romantic declarations that would make Mettaton blush and made plans for ludicrous scenarios, such as whether or not they should share an abandoned meal should they find one.

As their day slowly came to an end, Papyrus’ worries had faded. He wasn’t sure that he got it, but all of the fun he was having with Undyne put it into perspective; he had no idea what to expect, but realistically, it _was_ just hanging out with someone, but it also... wasn’t.

If he was honest, he still didn’t understand that part. Still, he wasn’t worrying about what it meant at this point, and that was enough for him.

“You got this, Papyrus! As long as you go in being you, it’ll be GREAT!”

“YOU’RE RIGHT, UNDYNE!”

“And you’re gonna text me ALL of the details as soon as it’s over!”

“YES, I- WAIT, WHAT?”

Undyne laughed, slapping him on the back before telling him that it was too late to back out now. He pretended to be mad, but he was doing a very poor job; he knew that she was just trying to lighten his spirits, and it _was_ working.

She figured that, having parted all of her mentor-ly wisdom upon him, she’d probably best be going. He offered to give her a ride home, which she happily accepted, and the two made their way back to Undyne’s house.

He dropped her off, bidding her a good night. She did the same, before reminding him that he HAD to text her about how the date was going. She ran in and slammed the door before he could object.

As he drove home, he couldn’t help but be quite glad that Undyne had visited him; she was as fun as always to hang out with, of course, but... he did need her guidance at times.

Undyne was extremely good at giving unconventional guidance; even if her lessons may end with the occasional fire or a few days of the two of them smelling foul, they _always_ made sense to him. Not only did he understand that he was going on a date tomorrow, but she managed to get through to him that it was nothing to worry about. Despite her aggressive attitude, she usually was quite good at putting him at ease.

As he went to bed that night, he felt excited for tomorrow; Undyne’s help left him feeling confident with his decisions on how to accessorize, as well as shooting down some of his less-fitting ideas (Though he still believed that anyone _could_ have a fun time solving puzzles, risk of electrocution or not). She had also allayed his fears surrounding the outcome of the date; as she had pointed out more than once, it really couldn’t go _that_ poorly. At worst, she just wouldn’t want to date him again, which certainly wasn’t the end of the world!

He knew that, above all, he was the Great Papyrus, and that a simple date was absolutely nothing to worry about!

Well, okay, he could worry a little – within reason – but the day would still be as great as he was!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may have published the last Undyne chapter, but I couldn't possibly have Papyrus going on a date and NOT have Undyne burst in to give him advice!
> 
> I also feel like this chapter does no harm in the fact that it shows that Papyrus needs Undyne, too; given the fact that Papyrus is the primary focus of the fic, her needing him has been shown fairly prominently, but I don't think I've quite shown how much he needs her in return. Even here, I haven't gone into too much depth with it, the main point is just to show that their friendship IS a two-way street; they're both there for each other when needed.
> 
> Next up, Papyrus goes on a date!
> 
> Obviously, given the great number of differing headcanons that people have about Papyrus, the very notion of him going on a date is going to be contentious. Still, I won't elaborate much just yet, I'll save that for when the date is over!


	22. Going with the Gator

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Today's the day! Papyrus is ready for his hangout/date with Bratty!
> 
> Things start off... fairly smoothly, actually.

Saturday had arrived. Papyrus’ morning was flawless; his routine went properly, his battle body was prepared, he had a healthy breakfast and today’s newspaper puzzles were exceptionally challenging. He opted to wait before calling Bratty – as he had been reminded by several of his loved ones, not everyone got up at 6AM, and needed a few extra hours of sleep.

Given the fact that sans had stayed over at Toriel’s, Papyrus was alone in the house until he felt it reasonable to make the call. He decided to do a few odd jobs around the house, such as reorganizing the spice rack, surfing the Undernet and re-reorganizing the spice rack.

He had to admit, even if he was quite patient, waiting could be quite a tedious task at times.

The tedium was cut short by a notification from his phone; specifically, he had received a text message from Undyne:

_“HEY NERD! gl today, remember u GOTTA give details!!!”_

Though he knew he had Undyne’s support, he still appreciated the gesture. He typed back a quick thank you message, pointedly avoiding any mention of the details in question. He figured that, if Undyne was up, surely it would be a reasonable time to call Bratty, right?

He searched his contacts before he came to a stunning realization: he didn’t have her number. He had given her _his_ , but hadn’t received hers in turn. Whoopsie doopsie.

That left him back at square one: waiting. The onus was on her to make the call, and he could do nothing until she did. Well, nothing within reason; he _could_ go through every phone number again trying to find hers, but that could be quite the undertaking; several monsters were using human phones now, and human phones had _far_ more numbers that could be called.

He accepted that he would simply have to wait.

He spent some time working on a puzzle; it was mainly just developing the concept, until he found somewhere that he could actively build them. It was definitely a solid way to pass the time; he didn’t know how long he had spent working on it before his phone started to ring.

Just after the first ring, he picked up.

“HELLO?”

“Hey dude! It’s Bratty! You, um... you still on for today?”

“OF COURSE! IT OCCURRED TO ME THAT WE HADN’T ACTUALLY MADE ANY PLANS OR SET A TIME, BUT I’VE BEEN BRAINSTORMING A FEW IDEAS! IS THERE A PARTICULAR TIME THAT WOULD SUIT YOU?”

“Umm... to be honest, I’d be ready to go in, like, half an hour? So any time after that is cool!”

He found himself smiling at that; it was nice to know that he wasn’t alone in having taken some time to prepare!

“EXCELLENT! WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO PICK YOU UP FROM YOUR HOUSE OR WOULD YOU PREFER TO MEET ELSEWHERE?”

“My place is fine! Here’s the address...”

Once he had gotten the details, as well as some quick directions (just to be safe), they cut the call short, deciding it would be better to speak in person.

The drive itself would be fifteen minutes at best, and that was accounting for traffic, so he still had a few minutes to go over everything.

Admittedly, he was beginning to doubt his date idea; even if Undyne had given him the go-ahead, he was starting to think that maybe it was impractical. Not impractical enough for Undyne to reject it, but given the property damage that tended to happen when they hung out, or the literal explosions that would occur when she first began to date Alphys, perhaps he should have realized that he had set an extremely low bar.

Still, as she had pointed out, the worst she could do was say no! So, he settled his nerves as best he could before making his way out to the car.

He made the drive, arriving ten minutes early. That left him with a bit of a conundrum; what was the etiquette for this sort of situation? Should he go ahead and knock on her door early? Would that be rude? Would it be better to wait for the ten minutes? ...in her driveway?

He settled on going in early; if she was still getting ready, he could simply wait.

The logic seemed sound, until he went to knock on the door. There was also the possibility that that would be a major inconvenience, and would sour the hangout/date before it even began! 

Before he could rethink it, he knocked on the door quickly; if waiting in her driveway was a bad idea, he was sure that standing in front of her door would be much worse.

He heard something going on inside the house, before the door was answered.

Bratty greeted him; she didn’t seem annoyed by his early arrival, which was definitely a good start. She stood before him in a dark pink tank top and black shorts; definitely a departure from what he had known her to wear, but given the fact that he had only met her twice, both under circumstances that were quite different, he supposed he couldn’t really make any assumptions as to what she usually wore.

“HELLO, BRATTY! YOU LOOK LOVELY! I, ER... I’M SORRY FOR ARRIVING EARLY, I HAD ANTICIPATED THE TRAFFIC TO BE MORE OF AN ISSUE!”

She smirked at the compliment, and tilted her head to his second comment.

“Wait, you’re sorry for being early? Like, dude, that’s not a bad thing!”

She snickered, and he found himself laughing along with her. He had to admit, when phrased like that, it did seem foolish to have been worried about it.

“So, like, this idea of yours? I bet it’s, like, totally off the wall, am I right?”

Normally he would have given a straightforward answer, but something about the situation gave him the idea that playing coy about it could be something fun by itself.

“MMM... IT COULD BE INTERPRETED THAT WAY...”

She gave him a playful shove.

“No way dude, you are NOT gonna make me guess!”

His smile widened when she said that. In truth, he had planned on just waiting until they were closer, but...

“WELL, I WASN’T PLANNING ON IT, BUT THAT COULD BE FUN!”

“Like, okay, umm...”

As she thought, they walked back to his car. Before she had even finished thinking of a first guess, she looked down in surprise.

“Wait, dude, this is your car? It’s totally gnarly!”

“ERR...”

She laughed for a minute, before getting in to sit in the passenger seat.

“Gnarly as in ‘cool’!”

When she clarified, he relaxed his shoulders; he hadn’t even noticed that they had tensed. He got into the car, but didn’t start it. He looked at her with a mischievous grin on his face.

“YOU HAVE TO MAKE YOUR FIRST GUESS BEFORE WE START MOVING!”

“Umm... it’s not an ice rink, is it? No, wait, that’s super dumb, there are no ice rinks open right now...”

He started the car and began to drive.

“IF IT’S ANY CONSOLATION, AN ICE RINK WAS MY FIRST IDEA! BUT... AS YOU SAY, GETTING TO ONE WOULD BE QUITE DIFFICULT IN THIS WEATHER!”

“No way! Like, we’re definitely on the same wavelength here! Okay, um... oh, it better not be the beach, I don’t have a swimsuit with me.”

“A SOLID GUESS, BUT NO, IT’S NOT THE BEACH!”

As the drive continued, she made a few more guesses before giving up. Papyrus was adamant that if she couldn’t guess, he couldn’t tell, so they switched over to more general conversation. Papyrus hadn’t prepared any conversation topics, as he and Undyne had agreed that conversation would be more genuine if he allowed it to come to him naturally.

It ended up not being an issue, as Bratty launched into conversation without much prompting.

“Okay, so, like, thoughts on glamburgers? Like, they’re super different to regular ones, but me and Catty can never decide whether it’s a good thing or not.”

“WELL... TO BE HONEST, I’VE NEVER ACTUALLY HAD ONE! I NEVER SPENT TOO MUCH TIME IN HOTLAND, SO I NEVER HAD THE OPPORTUNITY... STILL, I’M NOT THE BIGGEST FAN OF GREASE, SO I’M NOT SURE HOW FOND OF THEM I’D BE.”

“WHAT? Like, dude, you GOTTA try one! It’s a necessary part of LIFE! Even if you think it’s the nastiest thing ever, you have to TRY one!”

He had to admit, her enthusiasm, despite having caught him off-guard, was quite endearing.

“I’LL MAKE SURE TO DO SO AS SOON AS I CAN!”

“You gotta let me know what you think! But, okay, so you don’t know much about Hotland food... oh, how about nice cream? The Nice Cream Guy went everywhere in the Underground, right?”

“WELL, I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT HE WAS IN SNOWDIN FOR A WHILE! I LOVED THE MARSHMALLOW FLAVOUR!”

Bratty perked up in response to his comment; Papyrus wouldn’t have thought it possible, given how excited she had been bringing up the topic in the first place.

“Me too! Like, okay, the snail flavour is my number one favourite, but I love the marshmallow flavour too!”

"THE SNAIL FLAVOUR WAS GREAT, TOO! I DON'T KNOW HOW, BUT IT WAS ALWAYS SO FILLING!"

Papyrus assumed that it would be a footnote in their conversation, but as the drive continued, so did the conversation about nice cream. They offered opinions on flavours: both agreed that the regular flavour was a simple, yet lovable classic. Their opinions on the "All condiments!" flavour were not quite as in sync: that being said, even despite disagreeing heavily (Bratty believed it to be a unique mix of flavours that tasted 'like, A-MAZ-ING!', whereas Papyrus questioned whether or not it warranted being referred to as edible), there was no animosity in their debate.

As they drew closer to his planned location, Papyrus was growing glad that they had ended the guessing game; had they continued, there was a decent chance that she would find the actual plan underwhelming.

Papyrus parked his car in the nearest parking lot, which was a five minute walk from their destination. The two got out of the car and Papyrus led the way. He could tell that she was growing more and more curious as he walked on.

He stopped just outside of the place he'd had in mind, and glanced over to her. He couldn’t deny that he was a little nervous; things were going surprisingly well so far, so he hoped that they would still be on the same wavelength on this idea.

She looked to the location for a moment, before confusedly looking back to Papyrus. Her expression didn’t give as clear an impression as he’d hoped it would; although he was relieved that she wasn’t showing any blatant annoyance toward the idea, her confusion made it difficult to tell if she felt anything positive about it either.

“We’re going to a basketball court?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's hard to gauge whether or not Bratty is in character, given the amount of screentime she gets, but I feel like it's going okay so far!  
> And yes, her outfit is just what she wears in Deltarune. 
> 
> Although time constraints did play a significant part in this one being split in two, I realized that it's probably for the best anyway; with this introduction sorted, I can focus more on the date itself in the next chapter!


	23. Deep Discussions and Deeper Dunks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus and Bratty hit the basketball court!
> 
> What begins as a simple game becomes a lot more complex following the addition of a single rule.

Papyrus shuffled about on his feet as he let the idea settle in. Bratty had yet to make any further comment on his choice of activity, and he was beginning to panic, just the teensiest bit. He figured that there would be no harm in clarifying, just to be safe.

“WELL... I HAD A FEW IDEAS IN MIND, BUT VERY FEW WERE BOTH PRACTICAL AND ENJOYABLE FOR EVERYONE. I DON’T REALLY KNOW TOO MUCH ABOUT YOUR INTERESTS YET, SO I FIGURED THAT THIS WOULD BE A BASIC ENOUGH ACTIVITY THAT COULD STILL BE ENJOYABLE?”

He had clarified just enough to get his point across, and didn’t need to say any more. That, of course, didn’t stop him from rambling on, just to be _sure_ that he had actually made his intentions clear.

“I MEAN... I FIGURED THAT WE SHOULD BE DOING _SOMETHING_ , RIGHT? BASKETBALL CAN BE PLAYED TO ANY DEGREE; IT CAN BE LIGHT AND SIMPLE, OR IT CAN BE FAST-PACED AND INTENSE... PLUS, I’VE HEARD THAT BASKETBALL BRINGS FUN, JOY AND AMUSEMENT – THE PERFECT SETTING, RIGHT?”

He was starting to feel ridiculous – at first, he was just trying to clarify why he had picked the basketball court. Then he was justifying basketball as a sport. He was only steps away from launching into the history of the sport – which would not go very well, as he didn’t actually know much about it outside what he had seen on television.

Thankfully, it didn’t come to that; she had a smile on her face that only grew wider the more he spoke. She held a hand up to stop him before he went any further.

“Dude, it’s cool! Like, I’m into it, it just kinda... surprised? The last time I went out like this... ugh, I suggested going to the dump and doing some scavenging and junk, ‘cuz you can find some SUPER cool stuff there, but he was all like ‘Why don’t we do something more your speed?’, like, seriously... no one ever takes me seriously, especially given the fact that I’m, like... a twig.”

He was surprised that such comments just rolled off the tongue naturally; firstly, to admit that no one takes you seriously, and secondly, to use such a demeaning term to refer to yourself. He could relate to the former, but the latter was just upsetting to hear.

“WELL! I MAY NOT BE ABLE TO CHANGE YOUR OPINION, BUT I WILL TELL YOU THAT, AS LONG AS YOU ARE WITH ME, YOU WILL BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY! ...BY ME, THAT IS.”

Okay, slightly fumbled there. The sentiment could still be rescued as long as he was careful with his wording.

“AS FOR BEING ‘A TWIG’... I DON’T THINK ANY OF US SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF HOW WE LOOK. OF COURSE, WE CAN ALWAYS STRIVE TO IMPROVE, BUT... WELL, I THINK YOU LOOK GREAT THE WAY YOU ARE!”

He looked back over to her, and saw that her smile had faded somewhat. It wasn’t completely gone, but it had certainly changed. Was it a little more forced? Or maybe there was a hint of sadness to it?

“Thanks, dude. When I talked about positive feedback the other day, it, like, wasn’t just at the supermarket...”

After saying that, she caught herself. She quickly shook her head, before putting on a stronger smile.

“But we’re not here to talk about dumb stuff like that! We’re here to, like funk and dunk!”

He had hoped to press a little further, but she grabbed him by the hand and pulled him on to the basketball court. They were the only two present, so there wasn’t a concern about having to share their game with others. Not that Papyrus would have minded, but he had a feeling that the personal discussions hadn’t ended for the day, so being alone certainly helped.

“SO... WHAT SORT OF GAME WOULD YOU PREFER TO PLAY? PERHAPS SOMETHING SIMPLE TO START OFF WITH?”

She grabbed a ball and brought it over, a confident smirk on her face.

“I got a GREAT idea... so, first thing in mind was a simple variation of twenty-one; we just take turns trying to get the ball into the net.”

“THAT SOUNDS SIMPLE ENOUGH!”

“Not finished yet! So, like, we just take turns shooting into the net. No need to worry about any of the other rules – but, like, here’s the twist: every time you get a point, you gotta ask the other person a question, and they gotta answer.”

That certainly was an interesting proposal. While it did sound fun, and would definitely be an interesting way to get to know someone...

“DOESN’T THAT OPEN THE DOOR TO A FEW UNCOMFORTABLE POSSIBILITIES? PERHAPS WE COULD SET SOME LEEWAY ON ‘HAVING TO’ ANSWER CERTAIN QUESTIONS?”

Bratty rocked back and forth on her feet for a moment, deliberating on his question.

“Like, yeah, fair point. I figure we’d have a pretty good idea on what not to ask, but... okay, if a question is, like, wicked nasty, you can pass it and they get to ask something else. But if we’re gonna do that, we gotta take a pact to, like, ONLY skip the questions that are legit uncomfortable. No wimping out if it’s just a juicy one. Deal?”

She held out a pinky to him. He had to admit, it certainly was a fair compromise. He removed a glove and shook her pinky with his.

“YOU MAKE A FAIR ARGUMENT, BRATTY. IT’S A DEAL!”

She stuck her tongue out and winked.

“Tch, yeah, I’m like, a mega negotiator and stuff. So, you wanna shoot first or me?”

“WELL, SINCE THE GAME WAS YOUR IDEA, IT ONLY SEEMS FAIR THAT YOU GET TO TAKE THE FIRST SHOT. RIGHT?”

“Yeah, makes sense. You’re going DOWN, Papyrus!”

She spoke with confidence; even if her tone was a touch brash, he wouldn’t call it arrogance. She was ready for a good game, as was he. He was excited as she lined up her shot, watching as she concentrated on the net for a moment before firing.

She overshot, and the ball hit the backboard before bouncing back down, landing in her hands.

“We, uh... didn’t really talk about rebounds. Usually means that you take another shot, but I’ll leave it to you, dude.”

“THAT SOUNDS FAIR TO ME!”

She gave him a quick nod, before psyching herself up for another shot. Rather than shooting with less force, she changed the trajectory of her shot. It was a bold strategy, but Papyrus respected it. The ball flew, before landing directly into the net, not even skimming the rim.

“YES!”

Bratty jumped on the spot, before holding her reaction back. Papyrus didn’t really want her to, to be honest; he loved seeing people getting excited about things, and they were there to have a good time, right? Nevertheless, he didn’t say anything; even if it _was_ his place to do so (which it wasn't), he figured that commenting at all might just make things awkward.

As Papyrus went to collect the ball, he heard a few distinct ‘hmm’s coming from Bratty, preparing his first question. When he returned, she was ready for him.

“Okay, so, like, an easy one to start off: what’s your favourite food?”

“OH, THAT’S AN EASY ONE – OATMEAL WITH DINOSAUR EGGS!”

“Dude, dinosaur eggs ROCK! Like, it sucks that they’re so hard to get up here... Okay, okay, your shot!”

It was good to know that he wasn’t the only one having difficulty finding dinosaur eggs, especially from a fellow enthusiast! Already off to a good start, he lined up his shot, trying to ensure that his accuracy was on point; given his reflexes as a Royal Guard, he thought that going for rebound shots would be unfair.

He lined up the shot and, though it swerved around the net, it went in, which was what mattered.

“Okay, gonna throw in a rule so it doesn’t get boring – no repeat questions. It’d be super dumb if you just asked all the ones I asked you, right?”

“RIGHT. SO, UMM...”

Even though he had agreed to the rules of the game, he felt rather put on the spot. It should have been simple enough, but he was having difficulty coming up with any substantial questions. If he took too long to think, it would be weird. He’d just have to throw out the first valid question that came to mind:

“WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE WAY TO PASS THE TIME?”

“Like, hobbies and junk? Umm... I like a lot of things, but I guess my favourite would be looking at old things and finding out more about them. Like, we’d find so much cool stuff in the dump back in the Underground! I remember this one time, it was me, Catty and Alphys, and I found this weird looking rag, right? So, they’re like ‘Bratty, it’s just a rag, drop it’, but I was like ‘I got a feeling about it!’, and later on, we showed it to Gerson at his shop, and he told us that it probably belonged to a royal before the war!”

Her excitement had been growing as she spoke, her hand movements becoming more animated, her eyes sparkling... she was showing a side of herself that never seemed to come out any other time he had spoken to her.

She seemed to realize the same thing; a blush covered her face, and she ended that line of conversation. She seemed embarrassed, if not outright ashamed, before quickly running to the side of the court to get the ball.

At first, he didn’t quite understand it – why be ashamed of something she was so passionate about? As soon as the thought crept in, he knew exactly what she was feeling, or at least he thought he did; it could hurt a great deal to have others reject your interests. Even if he approached such a situation quite differently, he could understand how she came to behave the way she did – if he was on the right track, of course.

She returned quickly, ball in hand. Her usual demeanour had returned, as if nothing had been said at all.

“So, um, my shot next. I’ll keep it short this time, hah!”

“WELL, IF YOU WANT TO, THAT’S FAIR, BUT I WAS ENJOYING THAT STORY – YOU WERE TELLING IT WELL!”

She looked away, and, without response, stood in her spot for taking a shot. She threw the ball, barely even hitting the backboard. Papyrus felt bad about taking his shot, but he supposed it would have come across as condescending to offer a retry.

He collected the ball, and took his own position for firing. Once again, he managed to land it in the net.

Bratty’s expression was difficult to read; she stood there with a cool expression on her face, and he couldn’t figure out what was going on underneath. Although it was quite a risky move, he had to ask:

“IF YOU’RE NOT COMFORTABLE ANSWERING THIS, I’D UNDERSTAND, BUT... WHY DID YOU CHANGE THE TOPIC SO ABRUPTLY THERE? YOU LOOKED LIKE YOU WERE ENJOYING YOURSELF!”

She opened her mouth and closed it again. She sighed, and looked at him with a surprising amount of apathy.

“’Cuz it’s dumb? Like, history and all that junk is for nerds. I’m like, totally overreacting.”

Even if history wasn’t his favourite subject, he was surprised by the outright dismissal of it entirely. Especially from someone who had moments before, been gushing about an amazing discovery that they had made.

“WELL... I WILL RESPECT YOUR OPINION, BUT I WOULD HAVE TO DISAGREE. I THINK THAT ANYONE CAN APPRECIATE HISTORY, AND THAT IT CERTAINLY ISN’T JUST ‘FOR NERDS’. I’D ALSO LIKE TO SAY THAT IT’S NOT AN OVERREACTION TO BE EXCITED ABOUT SOMETHING YOU ENJOY! YOUR ENTHUSIASM IS INFECTIOUS!”

She narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing him. She went over and picked the ball up, before lining up her next shot. She was focusing intensely; she was determined not to miss. She launched the ball, and though it teetered on the edge of the net’s ring, it fell in in the end.

There was no cheer this time. She gave him a fierce glare as she asked her question.

“So, this ‘being nice’ deal. Like, are you just trying to get something or what?”

“I... I DON’T UNDERSTAND?”

“Like, from the start, you’ve been super nice to me. I thought like, ‘okay, he probably just thinks I’m hot or something’, but you haven’t let up. Like, EVER. So, like, do you want something here or am I seriously supposed to believe you’re always like this?”

That turned south rather quickly. He quickly made an effort to mask any hurt that would arise from her question and its implications, before trying to think of an answer that would show that he was being serious.

“I... WELL, WHEN I FIRST MET YOU, I COULD EMPATHIZE WITH YOUR SITUATION; THAT CUSTOMER WAS BEING QUITE RUDE TO THE BOTH OF US, AND I DIDN’T THINK IT WAS FAIR FOR HIM TO MAKE THINGS SO DIFFICULT. I REALLY DID THINK THAT YOU HANDLED THINGS VERY WELL, AND I DID ENJOY TALKING TO YOU...”

That was a good way to approach things, right? He didn’t want to over-explain, but if he left any crucial details out, she might miss his intentions.

“THEN, WHEN WE MET AGAIN AT MY CEREMONY, I WAS ACTUALLY VERY HAPPY TO SEE YOU! I DIDN’T EXPECT MUCH ELSE, BUT WHEN YOU OFFERED TO MEET UP ANOTHER TIME, I WAS EXCITED! I WANTED TO GET TO KNOW YOU, AND SINCE YOU ASKED ME, THERE WAS NO NEED TO BOTHER YOU AT WORK IF YOU DIDN’T WANT TO!”

He didn’t know if justifying the fact that he hadn’t asked her was necessary, but he thought that it was a good idea; if he _had_ approached her in work, and she didn’t want to spend any more time with him, things could certainly have become uncomfortable.

“IN FACT, I HAD ACTUALLY PLANNED ON CALLING YOU BEFORE YOU CALLED ME – THE ONLY REASON THAT I DIDN’T WAS BECAUSE, AS I REALIZED SOON AFTER, I HAD ONLY GIVEN YOU MY PHONE NUMBER, AND HAD FORGOTTEN TO ASK FOR YOURS!”

He was almost smiling at that memory; it may have been embarrassing, but it was at least somewhat comical that he had managed to forget something so blatant.

“SO... TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION... WELL, YES, THIS IS HOW I ALWAYS AM. I DO MY BEST TO BUILD STRONG RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER PEOPLE, EVEN IF I DON’T ALWAYS DO A PERFECT JOB OF IT. THERE’S NOTHING I WANT TO GET, HONESTLY! I REALLY AM JUST ENJOYING SPENDING TIME WITH YOU!”

He mustered up the courage to look at her, and she looked... forlorn, to say the least. Perhaps he had gone a little overboard in his explanation?

She crossed her arms and looked down to the floor.

“Sorry, dude. I just... I don’t like being made fun of. Maybe you weren’t doing that, but, like... I’m not the kinda person that anybody thinks of when they think ‘likes antiques’. So far, Catty and Alphys are the only people I know that don’t think it’s weird. Guess I’ve put a major bummer on this whole thing, huh?”

“ABSOLUTELY NOT! YES, BRATTY, I UNDERSTAND THAT, WHEN YOU’VE BEEN HURT, IT CAN BE DIFFICULT TO EXPRESS YOURSELF TO OTHERS – ESPECIALLY PEOPLE THAT YOU DON’T KNOW TOO WELL! BUT YOU SHOULDN’T BE ASHAMED OF THAT! HEALTHY SELF-EXPRESSION IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT! I MYSELF STILL HAVE PLENTY OF WORK TO DO ON THAT FRONT, AND I WON’T HEAR YOU PUTTING YOURSELF DOWN FOR IT!”

He might have been a touch forceful as he spoke – partially because he wanted Bratty to know that he sincerely didn’t want her to be ashamed of herself for something that wasn’t even a problem, and partially because he was on a similar journey himself, and that pushed him to want to offer just a little more support if he could.

Taken aback, she once again scanned him. This time, however, her response carried no anger in it.

“This is legit just what you’re like, huh? You really are just that nice? Isn’t it, like, crazy hard?”

“...AT TIMES, IT CERTAINLY CAN BE. BUT I BELIEVE THAT IF I’M POSITIVE ENOUGH, I CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE FOR OTHER PEOPLE, NO MATTER HOW SMALL. I... THERE HAVE BEEN MANY TIMES WHEN I WOULD HAVE LIKED TO HAVE THAT DIFFERENCE MADE FOR ME, I SUPPOSE. AND, AS SOMEONE WISE ONCE SAID, ‘BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE IN THE WORLD!’”

Their eyes met and, in that moment, he felt as though they just synced up; everything that he said clicked with her, and everything that she had said was clicking with him. It didn’t last; it only lasted for a second or two before Papyrus went to grab the ball.

“WELL, UM... I BELIEVE THAT’S A PRETTY THOROUGH ANSWER, SO I’LL JUST TAKE MY SHOT NOW!”

She nodded, and he prepared to take his shot. Once again, he landed it easily. He considered pressing on about her interest in antiques and historical items, but figured that it would be best to let her open up on her own time. His next question was also a little personal, but he honestly couldn’t think of much else.

“DO YOU HAVE A DREAM?”

“A dream? Like, ‘meaning of life’ kinda dream or ‘getting chased around the dump by a giant, angry glamburger’ kinda dream?”

“TH... THE FORMER, I THINK.”

He was pretty sure that that was what he was trying to get across. He figured that the latter certainly wasn’t something that anyone yearned for, at any rate.

“To be honest... not really? Like... stability, I guess. Like, being able to just look around the dump without thinking ‘but my boss might get mad if I smell going into work’, or being able to hang out with Alphys and Catty without thinking ‘is this gonna last?’ I guess what I’m trying to say is that my dream is to have a life where I don’t really have to worry about any major stuff?”

She still seemed unsure as she finished. Papyrus thought that to be a respectable dream; a life where you were comfortable. Even if his goals were a little different, he thought that her goal was a solid one to aim for.

“I CERTAINLY THINK THAT THAT’S ACHIEVABLE! OBVIOUSLY, NOT EVERYTHING CAN BE CONTROLLED, BUT I THINK THAT YOU CAN MAKE IT WORK!”

“I mean, any life that doesn’t involve dealing with grody customers or time-wasting creeps has gotta be an upgrade, right?”

She didn’t give him the time to answer; she didn’t have to leave to collect the ball, as it had managed to roll back to Papyrus’ feet. She picked it up slowly.

He didn’t quite know how he felt about her being in such close proximity, but... it wasn’t a bad feeling. Before he could even process it, he looked back to see her already taking her shot.

It landed cleanly into the net.

“Alright, so, if we’re asking big questions... what’s your worst fear?”

Oh no. That was a tough one to answer. Not only because he had a few potential answers, but they were all quite emotionally charged. Of course, he could pass, but he didn’t feel that to be fair given how open she had been with him.

He thought for a moment, trying to settle on one of the many uncomfortable answers.

“I... IT WOULDN’T BE RIGHT TO LIE OR HOLD BACK AT THIS POINT.”

He felt colder than he ever did in Snowdin. Even the mere thought of it was enough to rattle him.

“MY WORST FEAR IS THAT MY BROTHER MIGHT GIVE UP.”

Bratty stood uncomfortably. She knew that she had just opened Pandora’s Box, and couldn’t take it back, so she just stood and waited for him to elaborate.

“HE... HAS GREAT DIFFICULTY. HE STRUGGLES TO GET OUT OF BED, HE STRUGGLES TO BE ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT ANYTHING LONG-TERM... AND HE DOESN’T TALK ABOUT ANY OF IT. I’M JUST TERRIFIED THAT ONE OF THESE DAYS I’LL... LOSE HIM. I TRY TO BE ENOUGH FOR HIM, BUT... I DON’T THINK I AM. I’LL ALWAYS BE THERE FOR HIM, AND I’D DO ANYTHING FOR HIM, BUT I... THERE ARE TIMES WHEN HE NEEDS MORE THAN I CAN GIVE. HE’S BRANCHING OUT MORE THESE DAYS, BUT IT’S HARD NOT TO WORRY.”

“Wow, that’s, like, super rough. I, uh...”

She didn’t have much to say. Not that he had expected her to, of course; it was such a complex problem to him, let alone to someone who barely understood the situation.

He also didn’t expect her to pull him into an awkward hug.

“I can’t, like, even pretend that I have any idea what that’s like. I think you have, like, MAJOR guts to admit it. I feel like it’d be crazy dumb to say something like ‘it’ll get better’ or whatever, so I’ll just say that I think you got it in you to keep handling it. And, like, if you don’t some times... maybe, um, call me or something?”

He _really_ didn’t expect that. He returned the hug, and couldn’t describe what he was thinking or feeling in that moment. He felt... relieved? Appreciative? Happy? All of those emotions and more, all for someone that he had only recently met, all because they were sharing their most intimate secrets over a game of basketball.

“THANK YOU, BRATTY! YOUR CONSIDERATION MEANS A GREAT DEAL!”

He tightened the hug for a second, just to communicate the sincerity of his words. When they separated from each other, Bratty’s face had once again taken on a shade of crimson.

“Uh, yeah, no problem, dude...”

They continued on, asking each other questions, laughing at some bizarre misses (Such as Papyrus’ attempt to put a spin on the ball, somehow managing to throw it behind him while aiming forward) and being amazed by some trick shots (Bratty, emulating a movie she had seen, threw the ball behind her without looking at the net, and managed to get it in).

With only one shot left to ‘win’ the game (which he considered arbitrary, really; he felt as though they had both won, given how much closer they had grown during their game), Papyrus decided to go for something flashy. It would be a difficult manoeuvre, but he was confident that he could pull it off.

He took his position, as far from the net as he had to be. He did a few warm-up stretches, and leapt from the spot. He didn’t have any momentum to carry him, so he was launching towards the net with nothing but his own strength to propel him forward.

Thankfully, all of his training had paid off; he had managed to catapult himself right up to the net, and made a show of dunking the ball into the net.

He was quite proud of the display he had put on, until he realized that his plan had a fatal flaw:

He had failed to account for the landing.

His hands loosely slid against the ring of the net, completely killing his balance. The ball hit his foot as it crashed down, pulling him with it. He plummeted, hitting the ground with a graceless WHUMP.

Bratty rushed over, checking to make sure that he was alright. He didn’t have any injuries (as could be expected from an official Royal Guard, of course), although he did have a sore elbow, and his right foot had certainly seen better days. Still, he could brush that aside to ask his final question.

This one had been nagging at him for quite a while, and, although it might make things awkward, he really did need a solid answer on it. She realized that he was preparing to ask his question, so she stood expectantly, leaning forward with a hand on her hip.

“BRATTY... WHAT IS THIS?”

“Huh? What’s what?”

“TODAY. ARE WE JUST HANGING OUT OR IS THIS... A DATE?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp. I managed to get up to 22 chapters before I missed a daily upload, so my run wasn't too bad! I don't have much left in the plans, so I was hoping to make it the whole way through, but I can't change that now!
> 
> I'll say that, while I'm hoping to keep up with the daily uploads, I don't know how feasible it is; I'm working long hours and starting extremely early, so I tend to be really exhausted when I get in. Even if I could manage to write a chapter in that state, I doubt that it would be as good as it could be. Of course, if I can write a chapter in that state and I think it's good enough, I'll still publish it! But if it comes down to ensuring the quality of the fic or making daily uploads, I'm gonna have to stick with the former.
> 
> As for the chapter itself, it ended up being... just over 4000 words, and is the second longest in the fic. Wow, that was unexpected. This is another case of a chapter being split; not for time constraints, but because I want to give the next scene time to breathe as well.
> 
> Thanks for sticking with the fic! Sorry again to have to stop the daily uploads, but I want to make sure that the fic is as good as can be, and I'll still try to keep the uploads close enough together - just close enough that I can keep things up to snuff!
> 
> Also, in case I haven't mentioned it enough - editing fonts. Ugh. Made a mistake with copy/pasting so I had to go over the whole thing a second time doing it. Please, if you're ever writing sans or Papyrus dialogue and you copy paste the span class message, just double check that the brackets are there. Don't make my mistake.


	24. Delicious Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bratty and Papyrus decided to cap off their day with some food.
> 
> While doing so, they have a discussion on whether or not they're actually on a date, and what comes next.

Papyrus’ question was blunt; despite what Undyne had told him, he hadn’t actually been sure of what the evening was. Even with everything she had told him, he couldn’t help but think that things were going just as they would with a friend, albeit with some more tension in the air.

Although Papyrus had been fretting internally about Bratty’s response, she didn’t actually seem too concerned; she rocked back and forth on her feet for a moment, as if thinking about her answer.

“I mean... I’m cool calling it one if you are? I’m having a lot of fun, so I’m actually feeling pretty chill with taking it whichever way you wanna, dude.”

He quite liked that answer, actually. Even if she had just shifted the question back to him, he felt as though there was much less pressure; if she really was enjoying herself with him, and he was enjoying himself with her, there didn’t seem to be much of a need to place a label on anything too hastily.

“WELL... I’VE BEEN TOLD THAT A DATE INVOLVES GETTING TO KNOW SOMEONE BETTER, WHICH WE MOST CERTAINLY HAVE DONE! BUT, UM... IF I’M HONEST... I DON’T REALLY HAVE MUCH EXPERIENCE WITH DATING, SO...”

He knew that he was rambling, but he couldn’t help it. Even if there was no rush to decide whether or not their day was a date, he had no idea as to how they’d go about determining that. Even if he had to admit to his lack of experience, he figured it would be better to do that than to fumble forward and end up on the wrong page (or in a different book).

Bratty, once again, didn’t seem too worried. She was stifling some giggles as she spoke.

“Dude, relax! Like, today has been awesome so far, we can just kinda... hang out for the rest? Maybe get something to eat and talk?”

Her casual attitude was doing a stellar job of putting his mind at ease. Plus, her argument was perfectly valid; they had done something fun, so capping the day off with something simple sounded like a good idea. Although...

“I WAS TOLD THAT GETTING FOOD WAS A BAD IDEA, ESPECIALLY ON A FIRST DATE?”

Bratty grabbed him by the arm and began tugging him back towards his car.

“Tch, well I’m _on_ that first date with you and I say it’s a good idea. C’mon dude, I’m, like, STARVING!”

Well, he couldn’t argue with that. Even if it went against what Undyne had told him, he agreed to end the day with some food. Technically, if it was just capping off the night and they didn’t do anything else, it would fit with what she had told him... well, he’d also have to avoid buffalo wings, but it could work!

“SO... DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING IN MIND?”

“Dude, I could eat, like... worms at this point. But, uh... I do know a pretty cool diner if you wanna give it a shot?”

Well, even if he assumed most of the options would be greasy and unappealing, he would still prefer grease to worms. Probably.

“VERY WELL! WE’LL GIVE THIS DINER A SHOT!”

They had reached Papyrus’ car and had gotten in. Conversation didn’t progress too far, as a good chunk of the ride consisted of Bratty giving Papyrus directions. It was quite near to the town that they were living in; he was surprised that he hadn’t heard about it before; from what little Bratty had been able to explain in-between giving directions, it turned out that the place was run by monsters, which left him feeling even more surprised.

“Yeah, I don’t know how the place slips under so many people’s radars. I guess it’s, like, just because it’s not Grillby’s? Like, that place is cool and all, but this place is CRAZY good. I guess they just don’t have as many people talking about the place as he would, and, like, they don’t advertise ANYWHERE. It sucks, it’d be cool to see some more people going there, they work crazy hard to make the place special.”

His interest was growing the more she spoke about the place; so, she had been to Grillby’s and preferred to eat at this diner, which was definitely a solid point in its favour. He decided that he would reserve any other judgements for when they actually went in.

They pulled up and parked, and Bratty pointed him towards a nearby building. As the two made their way over, he took in the design; the bright neon sign above the building was rather eye-catching, and the sleek paint job certainly did give it a modern feel.

They went inside and, true to Bratty’s statements, there were very few customers. She directed him to an empty booth and plopped herself down onto one of the seats with extreme familiarity; he could easily believe that it would be the same way she’d hop onto the couch at home after a long day (If she had a couch; he supposed he couldn’t really make assumptions).

He sat himself down too, taking a look around as they waited for their menus. The interior of the place felt just as modern as the outside. However, while the outside left him feeling as though he’d be going into a generic fast food place, the interior was different; it felt... cozy? If nothing else, he could also feel some odd sense of familiarity: he felt quite comfortable where he was, and the pleasant colours and decent sanitary standards certainly didn’t do anything to lower his opinions.

“See? It’s pretty cool, right? Like, it’s not like in Grillby’s where you gotta keep an eye on the floor so you don’t step in something...”

“I’M AFRAID I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU MEAN! I DON’T EVEN WANT TO KNOW WHERE HALF OF THE STAINS ON SANS’ CLOTHES COME FROM WHEN HE LEAVES THAT PLACE!”

The two laughed before being approached by a waitress carrying two menus.

“Hello, Bratty! It’s lovely to see you, and you’ve brought a fresh face with you!”

She turned to hand Papyrus his menu. She had barely even registered his appearance before the two recognized each other.

“Well, hello there, stranger! I haven’t seen you since we left the Underground!”

“I WAS WONDERING WHERE YOU’D GONE! I’M GLAD TO SEE THAT YOU’RE STILL IN BUSINESS!”

She nodded contently, quickly motioning towards the counter.

“It’s definitely a change from runnin’ my own place, but... it’s pretty nice, I have to admit. Sure, I’m on someone else’s schedule, but really, not much else has changed. In fact, since I’m not workin’ by myself any more, I have more time to spend with the family! Speakin’ of, how’s your brother? You two still up to your old tricks?”

“I’M DELIGHTED TO HEAR THAT THINGS ARE GOING SO WELL FOR YOU! PLEASE GIVE YOUR FAMILY MY BEST WISHES! AS FOR SANS... WELL, THINGS ARE CERTAINLY A LITTLE DIFFERENT LATELY, BUT WE’RE STILL THE SAME SKELETONS THAT WE’VE ALWAYS BEEN!”

He figured that going into details on sans’ situation or his own business as of late was probably beyond the scope of a quick catch-up, and decided that that was a suitable answer to her question.

At any rate, she seemed happy enough, smiling pleasantly before leaving himself and Bratty to look over the menus. When he turned back, Bratty was looking at him fondly and laughing.

“Geez, I know you said you’re always like this, but, like, you’re giving me cavities right now.”

“IMPOSSIBLE! THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS NUTRITIONALLY BALANCED, AND I MOST CERTAINLY HAVE ENOUGH CALCIUM IN MY BONES TO PROMOTE HEALTHY TOOTH GROWTH!”

Still laughing, she shook her head before turning back to the menu. She really didn’t do much more than glance before putting it back down. Papyrus, on the other hand, scanned it carefully.

Sure enough, most of the options left the door open for unpleasant amounts of grease. At the very least, there was a salad bowl on there that seemed rather appetizing. It came with a side of fries, but he figured that he could simply ask to have it without. Content with his choice, he also put his menu down.

They engaged in light conversation for a few minutes, mainly discussing the diner itself as they waited for the waitress to return. Bratty pointed to the pictures on the wall; though he couldn’t make them out too well from their distance, she seemed particularly interested in a photo just by the clock; from her description, it depicted Asgore and someone she didn’t know in holiday outfits. Papyrus would have to ask Asgore about that when he got the chance.

Before Bratty could give her own theories, the waitress returned to take their orders.

“So, what can I get for the two of you tonight?”

She turned to Bratty first. Bratty rattled off her order without missing a beat. If Papyrus had to guess, he’d assume that it was either her usual order or a close variant thereof.

“Could I get, like, a double C’sburger with extra relish, a large fries with the taco topping and a soda? Thanks so much!”

Fitting with his guess, the waitress had scribbled the order down before Bratty had even finished speaking. She turned to Papyrus, who picked the menu back up, just to be safe. He pointed to the salad bowl.

“COULD I GET THE SALAD BOWL WITH NO FRIES, PLEASE?”

Before she could take down his order, Bratty stopped him.

“Whoa, whoa, dude, they’re free! Why not give ‘em a try?”

“I, ER... I’M REALLY NOT VERY FOND OF GREASE. I FIGURE IT WOULD JUST BE A WASTE, WOULD IT NOT?”

The waitress just smiled, before jotting something down on the order.

“Don’t worry hun, we’ll make sure they’re nice and crispy for you! Besides, even if they’re still not to your liking, I have a feeling they won’t go to waste. What would you like to drink, sweetheart?”

Papyrus blinked in surprise while Bratty chuckled at the less-than-subtle comment.

“OH- THAT’S VERY CONSIDERATE, THANK YOU! I HATE TO COMPLICATE THINGS FURTHER, BUT IS IT POSSIBLE TO GET THE BREAKFAST TEA? OR DO YOU PERHAPS HAVE AN EVENING TEA AVAILABLE INSTEAD?”

Both the waitress and Bratty laughed at his question. He was quite confused, but didn’t comment; they didn’t seem to be laughing in mean spirits, so he figured that it was a simple misunderstanding and laughed along with them.

The waitress, having taken both of their orders, left them to get their drinks. Conversation didn’t progress much further in the meantime, and she returned with a surprisingly large mug of tea and a larger glass of soda for Bratty. The two thanked her before she left again, this time to greet another customer. As the mole sourly planted himself onto one of the barstools, the waitress braced herself before walking over.

Papyrus didn’t quite follow, but Bratty leaned over and began to whisper.

“We’re definitely not gonna be interrupted for a while. That dude is, like, a mega pain here. He always tries to smuggle his own food in, and whenever he gets called out on it, he just goes on these long rants about how he misses his job. Like... geez, I hate that she always gets stuck with this guy.”

Although Papyrus felt bad for the fellow losing his livelihood, especially if it was impacting him hard enough to lash out at others, he didn’t comment; he supposed that, unless there was any serious discord, it wouldn’t be his place to intervene. He felt some sympathy as he looked over to see the tired look on the waitress’ face, and the indignant look on the mole’s as he pulled his hat down firmly.

Indeed, it was probably best for him not to form opinions on something that he wasn’t privy to.

“Anyway, dude, pretty sure you got something you wanna talk about?”

He returned his focus to her. She was smirking, resting her arms on the table as she waited for him to continue their discussion from the basketball court.

“RIGHT... UM, SO, WHERE WERE WE?”

Still unsure of himself, just a little, he opened with a question, hoping that Bratty would take the lead. As if sensing his intentions, her smirk widened.

“Wellll, as far as I remember, you were asking me if we were on a date, and I was like ‘I’m cool with whatever’... so, what are YOU cool with?”

Rats. The pressure back on him, he thought for a moment, before deciding that the best approach was to be honest, even if it wasn’t necessarily a preferable response.

“I... REALLY DON’T KNOW. I’M CERTAINLY HAVING A GREAT TIME WITH YOU, BUT... I STILL DON’T QUITE FOLLOW WHAT THE DIFFERENCE IS BETWEEN DATING AND HANGING OUT?”

She didn’t respond for a moment, and he hoped that it was just because she was thinking about that herself. She took a sip from her soda before resting her head on one hand.

“Umm... honestly, not that much? Like, at the start, they’re basically the same thing. The first few dates are kinda just getting to know each other and seeing if they have any weird stuff that makes you say ‘Nah, not my type.’”

“HOW DO YOU MEAN?”

“Well, like... remember how you said you were chill with me liking ancient relics and junk? I’ve been with people who were super jerky about it. Like, people telling me I need to spend my time doing stuff that’s ‘useful’ or not to ‘go out of my depth’. Even if they’re hot, I don’t want anything to do with buzzkills like that. That’s what the first few dates are for, they give you a chance to see if you and the other person are too different or whatever.”

That actually made a lot of sense. He knew that his own eccentricities could be a bit much for some, so it would be wrong to make a commitment of any kind beyond friendship if someone didn’t like certain things about him. It seemed that Bratty was in a similar boat; he was glad that she was being so patient with him.

“I’M SORRY TO HEAR THAT YOU WERE TREATED THAT WAY! SO... ASSUMING THAT THE FIRST FEW DATES ARE SUCCESSFUL, WHAT COMES NEXT?”

She shrugged off his comment, though she seemed much less concerned about the way others had treated her than she had been earlier.

“Well... after that, you kinda get... closer? Like, you still go on dates and stuff, but you make time to do more simple stuff, like watching movies or just relaxing at home together. I guess I’ d say it’s like getting used to something you like? Like... you don’t need to do all this wicked fun stuff every time you’re together, you just... hang out and have fun, no big deal ‘cuz you’re pretty close?”

Although he understood her explanation, it still seemed to be no different to a close friendship as far as he could tell. She could see his confusion, as she tried to clarify.

“It’s still a lot like being friends with someone, it’s just... you do things a little different? Like, sometimes you borrow a jacket and you just hold onto it ‘cuz it makes you think about them, or you hold hands in public, or you make out and stuff when you’re comfortable with it...”

He appreciated her way of explaining the concept to him; he could tell that she was altering things to fit with his perspective. He understood that their backgrounds were quite different, and there were probably a great many details that she was leaving out or explaining differently to give him a more basic understanding.

“I SEE. IS THAT ALL? IT STILL SEEMS LIKE A CLOSE FRIENDSHIP, BUT I THINK I’M STARTING TO GET IT!”

She cleared her throat, face going red. Papyrus didn’t think he’d said anything offensive, though he supposed that there were a great many things about dating that he didn’t understand yet.

“Uh... well, I can’t tell if you’re messing with me or not, but let’s save talk for ‘more’ ‘til we’ve gotten through a few dates first.”

Oh. Whoopsie doopsie. He knew what she was referring to; he’d heard Undyne make a variety of crude jokes on the subject, and, though he had no experience, he understood that it was a fairly intimate concept. He supposed that it made sense that it would come up eventually, it just... hadn’t come to mind.

“AH! I’M SORRY, I HADN’T INTENDED TO MAKE ANY IMPLICATIONS! I’M JUST... TRYING TO UNDERSTAND ALL OF THIS. THIS IS ALL QUITE NEW TO ME, SO I’M JUST TRYING TO FIGURE IT ALL OUT.”

Although she was still red, she didn’t seem to be offended by his mistake.

“It’s cool, dude. I just... well, a lot of people wanna just go straight there, which is totally bogus. So... you’re not just looking for that, right? You’re actually interested in everything else?”

Although he didn’t quite understand why she seemed so uncertain, he could tell that this was a sensitive topic. He’d have to be careful about his wording, as he certainly didn’t want to upset her or give off the wrong impression.

“I... TO BE HONEST, I DON’T THINK I’VE EVER REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT THAT. IT’S... NEVER REALLY COME UP? THE FURTHEST THAT I HAD THOUGHT ABOUT WAS KISSING, AND EVEN THEN, IT WASN’T MY PRIMARY CONCERN. EVEN WITH YOUR EXPLANATIONS, I’M STILL NOT SURE HOW THIS IS ANY DIFFERENT FROM HANGING OUT, SO... I’M HAPPY TO KEEP THINGS MOVING AT YOUR PACE, I THINK?”

Once again, she was scrutinizing him. This time, however, she didn’t push back. She took his answer on-board and pondered on it for a few minutes.

“If I was talking to anyone else, I’d be calling that a super obvious lie. But... I think you’re pretty legit. So... I’m cool with that, I guess? I mean, even if we end up not dating, pretty sure you’d be a cool friend to have.”

He couldn’t think of a better end to the question: she seemed to like him enough to want to continue dating, although perhaps at a slow pace, which he certainly didn’t mind. If they weren’t compatible, or if he simply didn’t adapt to the dating world... they could still be friends. As long as they communicated properly, there was nothing to be afraid of!

“I THINK THAT’S QUITE A SOLID CONCLUSION! I REALLY DO APPRECIATE HOW PATIENT YOU’VE BEEN... I IMAGINE IT MUST BE DIFFICULT WHEN ONE PARTY HAS NO IDEA WHAT TO DO.”

She rolled her eyes.

“Pfft. Difficult is the pushy ones. Or the creeps. This is different, but... I’m having a lot of fun, and I’m pretty sure you are too?”

He affirmed that he was enjoying himself, and though that they had found a pretty solid point to end the conversation, as he figured that asking for more details on ‘the pushy ones’ or ‘the creeps’ wouldn’t bring up any fun memories.

“SO... I BELIEVE THAT YOU HAD A THEORY THAT YOU WANTED TO SHARE ABOUT ASGORE AND THE OTHER PERSON IN THAT PHOTO?”

She gave him a wide smile before beginning an explanation on her thoughts on the identity of the mystery fellow. She believed him to be very close to Asgore, and raised the idea that the two had fallen for each other following the queen’s departure.

Before she could get into the logistics of the idea, the waitress returned with their food. She didn’t stop to chat, hearing the mole from earlier calling her over. They thanked her and wished her luck before starting with their food. Papyrus went instantly for the salad bowl, but after two bites, he was stopped by Bratty.

“Dude, you gotta try the fries! Just one!”

He supposed that he couldn’t just leave them there, and carefully picked one up. It didn’t seem too greasy (at the very least, it wasn’t coating his phalanges when he touched it, which was a promising start), so he decided to just take a bite without thinking too much.

“IT’S... NOT TOO BAD, ACTUALLY!”

“I told you, dude, they put in a lot of effort here to make the food good!”

The two resumed their meals, Bratty making quick work of hers while Papyrus made his way through the salad bowl slowly. He noticed that it only took a few minutes before Bratty was reaching over to take some fries from his bowl.

Before he could comment, she held one up and smirked.

“Sorry dude, forgot to mention that dates share food, especially stuff like fries or popcorn.”

“BUT YOU CONVINCED ME TO GET THE FRIES IN THE FIRST PLACE!”

Of course he wasn’t _actually_ mad. She could tell, as her response was to laugh and take another few of his fries. Had he just been played?

Her satisfaction as she continued to eat his fries told him that yes, he had been played, and by an expert.

Together, they made quick work of his meal. As they reached the end of the fries, however, inspiration struck Papyrus.

“SAY... YOU SAID THIS PLACE ISN’T TOO WELL ADVERTISED, RIGHT? WHY DON’T WE DO OUR OWN ADVERTISING?”

“Whatcha got in mind?”

He pulled out his phone and grabbed a fry, posing for a selfie. Bratty caught on, leaning forward and doing the same. He snapped a picture of the two of them, before logging on to the Undernet.

“OKAY, NOW THAT WE HAVE THE PHOTOS, WHAT TAGS SHOULD WE USE? OBVIOUSLY, THE RESTAURANT NAME, MY NAME, YOUR NAME... WHAT ELSE?”

“‘First date’ would definitely get some gossip going... plus, it’d make the place look like a super cute spot for dates?”

Although a touch flustered, he agreed with the sentiment, and added the tag before posting it. Before two seconds had passed, it had received a like and a comment, being very quickly followed by two others.

He didn’t have time to read any of the comments before the waitress had dashed over to them. The mole watched her for a moment, before throwing his hands in the air and turning back to his meal.

“Hey there, you two! I hope you enjoyed your meal? How were the fries?”

Bratty and Papyrus snickered, and he felt a wave of joy as he realized that they already had their first in-joke.

“THEY WERE VERY WELL-MADE, AND THE LACK OF GREASE WAS GREATLY APPRECIATED!”

“Aww, glad to hear it, hun! So, will you two be having dessert?”

Papyrus looked over to Bratty; he didn’t mind, so he left the decision to her.

“Nah, I think we’re pretty good. I’m actually pretty full...”

She winked at Papyrus as she spoke, and he stifled a laugh; he didn’t want to exclude the waitress from their joke, but hiding his laughter was proving quite difficult.

The waitress looked back and forth between the two and smiled, before leaving to get them their bill. She was quick about it; she made a point of avoiding the other patron, and returned to the pair, leaving the bill with them. Her movement was languid as she made her way back to the mole, stalling as much as possible before returning to check on him.

Bratty looked at Papyrus for a moment as she took out her purse.

“Like, we can both get our own, but how are we gonna handle the tip?”

“I’D BE HAPPY TO COVER THE TIP! CONSIDERING I’VE HAD SUCH A LOVELY FIRST TIME HERE, IT WOULD ONLY BE FAIR!”

Bratty accepted his logic, and gave him the money to cover her own meal. He headed up to the counter, giving the waitress another brief reprieve from the disgruntled customer. He paid for their meals, as well as giving a generous tip and thanking her for her kindness through the night.

“Aww, that’s so kind of you, hun! Now that you know about the place, I hope I’ll be seeing you again soon! Don’t be a stranger!”

He gave his own goodbyes and returned to the booth, where Bratty was already standing, ready to go. They left the diner and returned to his car, beginning the drive home.

As they drove back to Bratty’s house, conversation flowed much more freely, due in no small part to the fact that he had a much clearer idea of where he was going at this point.

They pulled up outside her house, and he stopped the car. She looked at him expectantly.

“So... we cool to do this again?”

“IF YOU’RE HAPPY TO DO THIS AGAIN, I WOULD BE MOST HAPPY TO KEEP GOING!”

She smiled and quickly checked something on her phone.

“So... I’m booked up for the rest of this week, but we could see what things are looking like next week, if that’s cool?”

“THAT SOUNDS GOOD TO ME! BEFORE YOU GO, THOUGH, I SHOULD PROBABLY GET YOUR PHONE NUMBER – TO AVOID ANY MORE CONFUSION!”

She gave him a coy smile, before taking his phone and typing her phone number in, saving herself as “Bratty xxx” in his contacts. It was a bold move, but he found himself smiling at it.

She stepped out of the car and bade him goodnight, waving as he drove off. He was very pleased with how the night had gone, and was quite confident that she had felt the same way.

Once he had returned home, he decided to wind down for the night. He quickly received a text from Bratty, reaffirming that she had had a great time and that she’d tell him as soon as they could meet up again. Feeling quite relaxed and comfortable, he texted her back, sharing the sentiment and telling her that he was looking forward to it.

It was only after he hit ‘send’ that a realization dawned on him. He had promised to text Undyne about how the date went. Figuring that Undyne wouldn’t settle for a simple text, he sighed, put on a pot of coffee and texted her, telling her that the night had gone well. He didn’t receive a response.

Until twenty minutes had passed, and the response came from a single powerful knock on the door, before it fell once again.

The two spent the night discussing the date, Undyne praising him for doing so well and prying for every detail she could think of, making several comments along the way. She appreciated Bratty’s twist on the basketball game, and commended Papyrus for being so upfront about his feelings. When she eventually decided that she had pressed him enough for the night, she congratulated him once more before loosely propping the door back up and leaving.

It didn’t take long for him to properly reattach the door, though it was certainly more strenuous labour than he had bargained for that evening. Thoroughly exhausted, he decided to skip winding down and head straight to bed.

As he drifted off to sleep, he felt quite happy with himself; he still didn’t quite know where things were going with Bratty, but they were both happy with things as they stood, and that was enough for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, so that took three chapters... certainly longer than I had planned! Still, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out overall!
> 
> So, the main thing that I thought people might have a problem with in this 'arc' was Papyrus' orientation; I know that a lot of people see him as ace and possibly aro, so I just wanted to clarify that I'm not trying to disrespect any such viewpoints, and explain where the idea came from.
> 
> Originally, Bratty liking Papyrus was just a gag, but I started to work with it and decided to expand on things a little bit. I know that Papyrus is generally seen as not understanding relationships, but I figure that, after a year on the surface, he's going to have SOME idea. So, I went ahead with the date, and tried to keep Papyrus' thought process clear enough throughout: he's definitely giving it a chance, but he's not necessarily feeling anything beyond friendship at this point. There's definitely room for more, and he does like her in, at the very least, a friendly capacity, but whether or not there's anything more to it is up to the reader. I won't be writing their future dates, as that would need me to firmly say 'it's romantic' or 'it's platonic', which I don't really want to do; I think it's pretty solid where it is, and is best left up to the imagination of the reader.
> 
> The next arc is the last one! Originally, it was just supposed to be a one-chapter epilogue, but I know well that it's going to be more than that at this point; if the date got more than one chapter, I certainly see this warranting at least 3 or 4, but we'll see how it goes! We're drawing close to the end, folks! Time to give an underused tag another shot to shine! Speaking of tags, that Jerry tag was added when the fic was planned to be a lot shorter. Seeing as he's barely relevant to the fic as a whole... welp, seeya, Jerry!
> 
> Also... yeah, this chapter had like ten thousand references to Deltarune. I know they're separate universes, but I do think it sets a solid base for what life could be like on the surface; I imagine, at least for a while, that the monsters live together in a place like Hometown, while the logistics of monsters fully integrating into human society are worked out. 
> 
> Also, thanks to their discussion in this chapter, I had to bump up the rating to a T. Not 100% sure if it's necessary but I'd rather play it safe.


	25. Curios with Caution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus is preparing to visit the community garden!
> 
> He just wonders if he should bring anything...

When Papyrus got out of bed on Sunday, he was feeling quite energized. He went through his morning routine, as always, and thought about how the community garden; he was more than happy to be helping out, though he didn’t quite know what it would actually entail. Should he be bringing flowers or decorations?

Well, he figured that flowers were probably not necessary; Asgore would probably have informed him if he needed any. Asgore was an expert with floral decoration, and Papyrus figured that surprise additions would just complicate things. It _was_ a community garden, but really, if it was to look its best, he figured it would be best to follow the advice of a master. He might be able to make some contributions of his own once he had learned a little more about gardening!

As for decorations... he thought that those might be an interference as well, but figured that something small could be of no harm. He decided that he’d pick something up on the way, just in case; he’d feel quite foolish if he was the only one not to bring anything, after all. Although he was all geared up to leave, he figured he’d check on sans before he left.

He was certain that he had heard... _something_ coming from sans’ room the night before. Knowing sans, it was some sort of top secret project that Papyrus wasn’t supposed to know about, though he tended to work on those in the basement, which made that possibility somewhat unlikely. Maybe he had gotten around to investigating the odd noises coming from the sink? Papyrus figured that speculating was rather pointless, and it would be much easier to just ask sans in person.

When he reached sans’ room, however, there was a sticky note on the door:

“the first note fell on the floor”

Sure enough, Papyrus looked down and found another note, which had clung to his boot. He plucked it off and began to read:

“was up late talkin to alph last nite, need some extra sleep thx”

Well... he wasn’t thrilled to hear of sans _or_ Alphys being up so late, but he supposed he could make an exception just this once. The two did get along quite well, and Alphys had explained to him that some people, such as herself, tended to work much more efficiently at night. Papyrus didn’t think that such behaviour was healthy, but he also didn’t think he had much of a right to comment. He decided to let sans be and headed out to the car.

Before heading down to the community garden, he took a quick detour and made his way to Gerson’s shop; Gerson tended to carry the most peculiar knick-knacks, but he figured at least one of them would be right at home in the garden.

Gerson looked up and smiled when he saw who had entered.

“Wahaha! If it ain’t the rookie himself! How ya been, sonny?”

“OH, I’VE BEEN QUITE WELL, THANK YOU! HOW HAVE YOU BEEN, MR. GERSON!”

“Ahh, same old, same old! A few interestin’ finds here, some snollygosters tryin’ to make a quick buck there... what can I do for ya, rookie?”

He explained that he was volunteering at the community garden, and was hoping to find a small decoration to go with it.

“Hmm... well, if yer gardenin’ with ol’ Fluffybuns... you’ll probably want somethin’ that fits with the scenery. Never was too keen on anythin’ too big: ‘might overshadow the flowers’ and all that...”

He heaved himself up out of his chair behind the counter, and slowly headed into the back room, instructing Papyrus to wait for him. Papyrus knew that it would take some time for Gerson to return, so he decided to have a look around, just to see if there was anything of interest around the shop.

Admittedly, he didn’t understand the appeal of most of it; he understood that many of the items held some sort of value, be it for historical purposes or simply because collectors might be drawn to them. He found himself taking a particular interest in a satchel that was hanging by the counter. He noticed that a small delta rune had been emblazoned into the front flap.

“Somethin’ catch yer eye there, rookie?”

Gerson returned, carrying a small box with him. He placed it on the counter and sat back down, not taking his eye off of Papyrus as he did so.

“I... IT’S NOT WHAT I CAME HERE FOR, BUT DOES THIS SATCHEL HAVE ANY HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE?”

“Depends on what ya mean by significance – belonged to an old... cadet, I think it was? Had a penchant for pickin’ fights, so he was mostly kept to makin’ deliveries. He used that satchel about twice; when it wasn’t scratchin’ his eye, it was gettin’ caught in his mouth! He got a bag that was more suited to his body shape eventually, so that one hasn’t been used too much!”

Although it wasn’t the most exciting story, Papyrus found himself interested, nonetheless. He returned to the counter and took a look through the box; admittedly, there wasn’t much that stood out. Then again, as Gerson had pointed out, he probably wouldn’t want anything that stood out _too_ much.

After a few minutes of searching and contemplating, he settled on a little ornament of a small green house; the bottom was divided into four squares, but the top right square had a small crack that split it a little further. It was the only item in the box that appealed to him, even if he couldn’t quite explain why, so he plucked it out and placed it on the counter, before asking Gerson how much the satchel was.

Thankfully, neither item was too expensive, and Papyrus was carrying enough on him to afford both. Just as he was preparing to leave, Gerson signalled for him to wait, his jolly demeanour turning to something more... stern.

“Listen, rookie. It ain’t really any o’ my business, so I won’t say much, but... be careful in that garden, ya hear? This time o’ year, Asgore’s gonna be reeeeaaaal particular about how things are done. Now, normally I’d just say ‘It’s a community garden, if I wanna plant some balmonies, I’m plantin’ some dang balmonies!’, but... fer now, try to keep the peace, got it? Let ‘im do things his way, and ya can make yer own decisions about it later.”

Papyrus didn’t quite understand where Gerson was coming from – especially since he wasn’t really planning on intervening much anyway – but he took what he was told on board regardless. He nodded, and thanked Gerson for telling him.

Gerson immediately returned to his usual jolly self, thanking Papyrus in turn for taking some junk off of his hands and told him to ‘get out there and get busy’. As the two said their goodbyes, Papyrus found himself wondering as he returned to his car.

If it was none of Gerson’s business, then Papyrus figured that it was certainly none of his, but... he couldn’t help but speculate what it was about this time of year that would cause Asgore to be so rigid in how a garden was maintained. Although he certainly had a few theories, he thought that Gerson had the right idea; if he wasn’t given any details, he probably wasn’t meant to know them in the first place.

Before leaving, he took a quick picture of the satchel and texted Bratty, asking if it was of any interest to her; he thought that she might appreciate it, even if the history behind it wasn’t the most exciting. He knew that she would be at work today, so he didn’t wait for a response before beginning the drive to the community garden.

Even if he was excited to be taking part in the project, Gerson’s words nagged at the back of his mind: though he knew Asgore to be very friendly and welcoming, he understood that everyone had their limits. He didn’t know exactly what was going on that warranted a warning, but perhaps it might be best to tread carefully.

Still, this was Asgore they were talking about! Even if he could be imposing when he needed to be, at his core he was a big, fuzzy pushover! Papyrus was sure that, no matter what was going on, everything would be fine as long as he did his best!

Well... relatively sure, at least.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "I don't plan on addressing the community garden. It was just a one-off comment to show that Papyrus was gonna be hanging out with the Royal Guards."
> 
> So much for that. I figured that, rather than just a single chapter for the ending, building it up a little and setting some things up felt more natural. The community garden ended up being a surprisingly fitting way to do that, so I just rolled with it.
> 
> This chapter itself doesn't offer much to go on, but it was in a bit of an awkward spot; it's pretty short by itself, but the following chapter needs to stand on its own feet, and this part would be a distraction, so I decided to make this a full chapter, even if it's not the most substantial.
> 
> Also, I promise the underused tag I mentioned isn't Gerson, I just couldn't resist using him again. I just knew that I needed someone to sell Papyrus a little trinket and that Gerson was the best person for that... okay and I wanted just one more appearance from him. What can I say, I love the guy.
> 
> As for the trinket itself... it won't have any significance later in the story. I just saw an easy chance to make a reference and I took it; I figured that stuff like lawn gnomes or the like wouldn't be Papyrus' style, so I decided to go for something more odd. I also considered a little Mr. Saturn instead, but decided that it wouldn't quite fit the "not standing out too much" thing.


	26. Ecological Exhaustion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus helps Asgore at the community garden!
> 
> For some reason, Asgore is really pushing himself - what could that be?

Papyrus pulled up to the garden and, sure enough, Asgore’s truck was already waiting there, though Asgore himself was nowhere to be seen. Papyrus parked nearby and made his way over, finding the monarch in question hard at work on pulling up some weeds; not that it was difficult for him to pull them, but rather his large paws made it difficult for him not to pull up the flowers with them.

He stood up for a moment to wipe his brow, before noticing that Papyrus had arrived. Papyrus had to admit that he certainly did look a touch stressed; his usually smiling face was contorted in concentration, and his usual poise was replaced with a disconcerting slouch.

Asgore beckoned him over, clearly doing his best to emulate the friendly attitude that normally seemed to come so naturally to him; as was familiar to Papyrus, it seemed that Asgore was trying not to let his problems become apparent to anyone else. As was also familiar to Papyrus, however, that sort of thought process could cause great difficulty if one wasn't careful. Papyrus considered commenting, but Asgore started to speak before he could: he explained that there was a great deal of work to be done, and he was thankful that Papyrus had arrived to help.

“Sadly, we do not have many long-term participants; 01 and 02 are the only people that have come back more than once... they should be joining us today, too, though they’re running a little late. In the meantime, would you like me to explain the basics to you?”

Papyrus accepted, and Asgore began to explain what they would be doing; first, they would remove the weeds that had been growing in the garden. Once they had done so, they would be planting some new flowers, which Asgore had brought with him. Once they had prepared the flowers, it would be a simple (although strenuous) task of placing the decorative rocks and ornaments to make it clear to members of the public where the garden began and ended.

It seemed simple enough; the only real difficulty he thought he might have was that he didn’t actually know which were flowers and which were weeds; he had learned over time that some weeds could actually be quite pleasant, so he thought it best to be sure. Asgore didn’t seem to mind a great deal, giving him a quick explanation of some of the weeds present.

Papyrus found out that, even in a relatively small space, there could be quite a variety of weeds. He was reeling by the time Asgore came to the end of his explanations.

“...so quackgrass can be quite an issue, especially if not disposed of properly! And, of course, we have... buttercups. Please, be especially careful handling those, alright, Papyrus? They can be quite dangerous, so it would be best to get rid of them as soon as possible, if you can.”

Although Asgore had been fairly laid-back for the most part, his tone changed when speaking about buttercups; the gravity of his warning made him a little uneasy, though he knew that Asgore wouldn’t be so stern without good reason. He didn’t quite know what to say, so he simply nodded in response. Asgore, in turn, handed him some gardening gloves, and the two got to work.

Papyrus had to admit, the removal of weeds was a lot more difficult of a task than he had anticipated: some of them had a knack for growing in harder to reach areas or painfully close to the flowers. Others were quite stubborn, refusing to budge from the ground or, in some cases, falling apart, forcing him to dig deeper to pull out the roots. As instructed, he took particular care when removing the buttercups, making sure to keep them away from Asgore; given Asgore's already seemingly fragile state of mind, Papyrus wanted to take every precaution to avoid upsetting him.

After about an hour of work, Papyrus heard two sets of feet approaching. While Asgore was too entrenched in his work to take note of the new entrants, Papyrus turned to greet them. Although the flannel shirts were a significant change in their attire, Papyrus recognized them immediately due to the fact that they were still wearing their helmets.

“HELLO AGAIN, FRIENDS! ARE YOU HERE TO HELP WITH THE GARDEN?”

Asgore looked up, before standing to welcome 01 and 02, thanking them for coming. 01 was quick to assure Asgore that they were glad to be there, while 02 simply nodded in agreement. Having worked in the garden before, Asgore didn’t stop to explain anything, returning to his work as soon as the greetings were out of the way.

Papyrus was surprised, as such behaviour seemed very unfitting for Asgore, but 01 and 02 didn’t seem to mind; they headed toward the other end of the garden without comment and got to work.

With two extra pairs of hands at work, the weeds were disappearing much more quickly. Once they had cleared about a third of the garden between the four of them, 01 suggested that they all take a break to cool down. Papyrus and 02 were in favour, though Asgore didn’t seem too keen to follow.

“Ah, well... perhaps the three of you should take a moment... you have been working quite diligently! I’ll just... keep at it for now...”

None of them missed the laboured breaths as Asgore spoke. Nor the massive sweat stains on his shirt (the light pink and white colours did little to hide them). Nor the fact that... well, _he needed a break._

01 and 02, although clearly concerned for Asgore’s well-being, didn’t comment. They didn’t leave, however; both stood awkwardly, as if waiting for Asgore to change his mind. When it became apparent that nothing was going to be done otherwise, Papyrus figured that he had to say something.

“ASGORE... PERHAPS YOU SHOULD JOIN US? YOU’VE BEEN WORKING LONGER THAN ANY OF US, SO SURELY YOU NEED A BREAK AS WELL?”

01 and 02 nodded in agreement, looking hopefully toward Asgore. Well, Papyrus assumed they were hopeful; their helmets made it difficult to be sure.

Asgore, however, didn’t budge; with three sets of eyes focused on him, the strain he was putting himself under was becoming much more apparent. As he knelt back, he didn’t turn to speak to them; he seemed to be having difficulty moving. Given the heat, as well as the abundance of fur on Asgore’s body... well, Papyrus figured that things could go south _very_ quickly if Asgore didn’t take a moment to cool off.

“Really, Papyrus... there’s no need! If I keep working... work on this garden will progress... much more quickly!”

“BUT WHAT’S THE RUSH? ISN’T A COMMUNITY GARDEN SUPPOSED TO BE A CONTINUOUS PROJECT?”

“Y-yes, well... I suppose that...”

Asgore’s line of thought didn’t progress too far; he only managed to mumble out a few words before collapsing to the ground.

01 and 02 jolted in shock, before stooping down to heave Asgore up. Between them, they were just able to carry his massive frame, while Papyrus led them to some nearby trees to cool him down. Once they had tended to him and loosened his shirt, Papyrus dashed to his car to get some water; he always carried several bottles in his trunk, just in case!

He returned to find that Asgore was stirring, though he didn’t quite seem coherent. 02 was tending to him, while 01 was pacing, muttering to himself. Papyrus brought some of the bottles to 02, who didn’t offer much to go on outside of a brief ‘thank you’. As such, the only sounds that he could hear were Asgore’s ragged breathing and 01’s muttering, which he couldn’t help but focus on:

“It’s like this EVERY TIME... why didn’t I say something sooner? What if it gets worse? Every year, we see him at his limit but we don’t get involved...”

Papyrus took over helping Asgore, slowly helping him to drink what he could. As he did so, 02 left to support 01; Papyrus couldn't help but notice that his method of support was almost entirely physical, barely uttering a single word the entire time. In his defense, it was working; 01 was calming down, his worried ranting ebbing away into silence.

Asgore, meanwhile, was becoming coherent much more quickly; though he was still exhausted, he seemed capable of forming full sentences, which was definitely progress. The three of them gathered around him, all concerned, but trying to give him as much space as they could.

“Ah... my apologies, friends. It seems I... may have over-exerted myself... perhaps I should take that break...”

That was about enough for Papyrus. He knew that, whatever was going on, Asgore was desperate to get this project finished. No matter how much it meant to him, however, Papyrus wasn’t going to let his friend suffer or push himself to fainting, no matter what the reason was!

“ASGORE, YOU’VE DONE ENOUGH FOR TODAY! I CAN SEE THAT THIS MEANS A LOT TO YOU, BUT... YOU’RE ENDANGERING YOURSELF. IF YOU PUSH YOURSELF TOO FAR, THEN YOU WON’T BE ABLE TO DO ANY WORK HERE AT ALL!”

Papyrus tried not to scold Asgore, but he needed to be clear; Asgore was finished for the day, and that was non-negotiable.

Asgore’s expression flickered to one of anger; Papyrus couldn’t deny that it was actually somewhat scary, as he had never expected to be on the receiving end of Asgore’s wrath, given how seldom _anyone_ managed that. Thankfully, the expression didn’t stay; it immediately changed to one of resignation. Asgore let out a deep sigh before relenting.

“I... I suppose that you’re right, Papyrus. If I ruined this, I... I don’t know what I would do. I hate to ask, but-”

“OF COURSE, ASGORE, I’LL DO AS MUCH AS I CAN FOR THE EVENING!”

Asgore offered a weak smile and a thank you. He tilted his head to look at 01 and 02; after a glance and a nod shared between the two, 02 offered to drive Asgore home, while 01 offered to stay at the garden to help Papyrus. With no time for argument, 02 led Asgore back to his truck. He helped Asgore into the passenger seat before hopping into the driver’s seat himself, taking a moment to get acquainted with the unfamiliar vehicle before driving away, giving a quick wave to 01 and Papyrus.

Papyrus returned the wave, while 01 blew a kiss to his significant other. Once the truck had disappeared from view, Papyrus and 01 were left in an awkward situation; neither knew the other quite well, and casual conversation would be rather difficult following what had just transpired.

“So, um, maybe we should just get back to it for a bit?”

Papyrus agreed, and the two returned to their work. After hours of monotonous work, the two managed to remove every weed from the garden; Papyrus didn’t know how long they had been there, but evening had come around, at the very least.

The two agreed to call it a day; Papyrus was no expert as far as floral arrangement was concerned, and 01 wasn’t too enthusiastic about doing so without Asgore’s presence. Papyrus considered leaving his trinket at the garden, but thought better of it; he didn’t know what was causing such distress for Asgore, but he didn’t want to interfere if it wasn’t necessary.

“So, uh... he’s gonna be okay, right?”

Papyrus was drawn from his thoughts by 01’s question; Papyrus hadn’t noticed while they were working, but he seemed to have gotten himself into a panic again. He was bouncing on the balls of his feet, hands fidgeting as he spoke.

“OF COURSE! HE JUST... NEEDS A STERN TALKING TO. I DON’T KNOW WHY HE’S WORKING SO HARD ON THIS GARDEN, BUT HE NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND THAT IT’S JUST A GARDEN!”

01 paused for a moment. He wrung his hands together, before walking closer to Papyrus. He sat down near the flowerbeds, and prompted Papyrus to join him.

“So, uh... you don’t know what time of year it is? Why Asgore is pushing himself so hard?”

Papyrus shook his head. 01 sighed, before leaning back, piecing his words together.

“We’re coming close to the anniversary of when his kids... passed on. Every year, he stresses himself out over it; he doesn’t want everyone to think about the day that their hope vanished, but... they’re his kids. Of course he wants to remember them. So every year, he pushes himself to these crazy extremes, trying to quietly commemorate them. We - me and 02 - see it every year; every time, I say 'This year I seriously ought to step in!' but... I never do. I... I shoulda said something before now...”

Papyrus thought back, remembering the story that Asgore had told him in the café. He remembered how torn up Asgore had been when describing what had happened, and that everything began when Chara fell ill...

Papyrus felt a sinking feeling below his ribs as he realized why Asgore had been so vehement that the buttercups be disposed of carefully.

“I UNDERSTAND HOW YOU FEEL, BUT... THERE’S NO POINT IN FRETTING. ALL WE CAN DO MOVING FORWARD IS TRY TO BE THERE FOR HIM, AND TO SUPPORT HIM HOWEVER WE CAN.”

“Like, I get that, but... with all of this, and the stuff going on in the Underground...”

He had begun to ramble, but immediately cut it short; he had clearly said something that he wasn’t supposed to, for whatever reason. Nevertheless, 01 did his best to backpedal.

“A-anyway, I’m pretty sure that you’re on the next patrol roster, right? So, uh, might see you there! I should, uh... I should probably check on Asgore and 02, see how everything is and all...”

Papyrus considered probing further, but... 01 was frantic enough as it was. Papyrus honestly just didn’t have the heart to press him, so he decided to just let it be.

“THAT SEEMS QUITE REASONABLE! WOULD YOU LIKE A RIDE OVER?”

“No thanks, dude! I, uh... I should probably be walking more anyway, ha ha... so, uh, have a good night? And, uh, don’t mention anything about what I said about stuff happening in the Underground, because, uh... that was just a mistake, I was thinking of something else.”

Papyrus accepted that he wasn’t going to get any further with 01 in any capacity, and bade him goodnight before heading to his own car. He felt uneasy as he drove home, feeling worried about Asgore and wondering what all this business was about the Underground.

He texted both Asgore and Undyne, checking to see how Asgore was doing and checking to see if Undyne had any updates about him being added to the Underground patrols. He received a quick text from 02 via Asgore’s phone, telling him that Asgore was doing well, simply needing some rest.

Soon after, he received a text from Undyne, telling him that it was a great thing that he asked, as she was actually hoping to fill one of Tuesday’s slots; Greater Dog had signed up for calligraphy classes, and would no longer be able to work Tuesdays or Thursdays. Once the details had been finalized, it seemed as though Undyne was getting ready to hang up, though she stopped him before doing so.

“Look, Papyrus, I’m gonna level with you. There’s something weird going on down there right now. It doesn’t seem to be anything TOO serious – just a few things being broken or out of place, but... be careful, alright? I have a feeling I know who’s causing the damage, and that you’re probably the only one that’ll be able to figure out why. Just... be on-guard, just in case, okay?”

“OF COURSE, UNDYNE! I WILL LIVE UP TO MY TITLE AS A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD MOST EXCELLENTLY! AND THANK YOU FOR BEING UPFRONT, I’LL MAKE SURE TO EXERCISE EXTRA CAUTION!”

Content with his answer, Undyne said her goodbyes and hung up, leaving Papyrus to wonder about everything that was going on.

So, something was going on in the Underground, leading to things being misplaced or broken. Given the fact that the Underground, as far as he knew, only had one inhabitant, the culprit seemed obvious, but... why? Was it out of boredom, perhaps to mess with the guards? Papyrus certainly thought it possible, but he couldn’t help but feel that that wasn’t right; it just didn’t feel right in Papyrus’ mind.

He knew he’d only have to endure tomorrow before he could find out himself, but... he had several theories running about in his head. Although some made more sense than others, he tried to settle down and accept that there was nothing he could do for the time being.

‘Tried’ being the keyword – sleep didn’t come easily to him that night.

And it certainly wasn’t helped by the fact that he could hear sans’ muffled voice, once again on a phone call late into the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Guards return once again! Have they earned a tag yet? I dunno, pretty sure this is their last appearance, are they relevant enough for a tag?
> 
> I was a little hesitant about calling them 01 and 02; I know that that's how they're referred to in-game, but it just feels a little odd. Still, they were important to the chapter, and just saying "the rabbit and the dragon" or "the Hotland guards" was too difficult to work with.
> 
> Asgore, meanwhile, suffers once again. Poor guy seriously needs help.


	27. Regarding the Ructions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus isn't going to check on the Underground until tomorrow, which means that he still has to pass today.
> 
> Thankfully, he's not alone in figuring things out.

Papyrus knew that there was little point in making plans for today, as he would need to prepare himself for going to the Underground tomorrow; not that he was out of shape, not by a long shot, but any Royal Guard worth their salt would take some time to ensure that they were prepared prior to heading into a possibly dangerous situation!

For Papyrus, that preparation would just involve double-checking protocols (All of which he knew like the back of hid hand) and going over some basic manoeuvres (which he did thrice a week anyway). As such, his expectations for the day as a whole were low; not that that was a problem, of course, but he had no notions of doing anything out of the ordinary.

As such, seeing sans, Alphys and Undyne crowded around the kitchen table when he headed down in the morning was quite the surprise.

“OH, HELLO EVERYONE! IS SOMETHING GOING ON?”

Although everyone was friendly and welcoming, Papyrus could tell that there was an air of uneasiness, and that he was missing something. The three shared a glance between them, before Alphys spoke up.

“S-so, um... Papyrus, you’re heading into the Underground? T-tomorrow, right?”

“YES, AS PART OF MY ROYAL GUARD DUTIES!”

“R-right... it’s just, uh... you know that something weird is going on down there, right?”

Well, of course he knew, but... he didn’t actually know any of the details...

“WELL... I’M AWARE THAT SOMETHING IS OUT OF THE ORDINARY, BUT PERHAPS I’M A LITTLE OUT OF THE LOOP?”

Alphys didn’t seem to know how to continue. She thought for a moment, before looking over to sans.

“welp, told ya.”

Papyrus would have found such a comment much less suspicious if Alphys hadn’t frozen up when she’d heard it. Between the three, Alphys had an expression of guilt, Undyne was glaring at sans and sans was, as per usual, smiling as though nothing was wrong.

“PERHAPS I’M A LITTLE MORE OUT OF THE LOOP THAN I REALIZE?”

Undyne was the first to come forward with an answer. He didn’t quite know what was going on, but he knew that she was formulating her thoughts carefully before speaking.

“Okay, so... you know that there’s something weird going on in the Underground, right? And, well, since we’ve all moved up to the surface, that means that there’s only one person left down there. So, you can imagine that we’re all coming to the same conclusion, right?”

“YES, I... I DON’T BELIEVE THAT HE’S DOING THIS FOR NO REASON, BUT I UNDERSTAND THAT HE’S MOST LIKELY THE ONE CAUSING THESE DISTURBANCES.”

He assumed that his concession would put everyone at ease, but Alphys still looked quite uncomfortable.

“Well, uh... he doesn’t really have many people that trust him... or like him... or- well, you get what I mean. You’re pretty much the only person who’s really willing to put up with him.”

“YES, I’M HIS ONLY FRIEND, AS FAR AS I’M AWARE. I KNOW FOR SURE THAT I’M THE ONLY ONE THAT STILL VISITS HIM, AT LEAST!”

“Right. So, uh... keeping that in mind, Alphie sorta thought that, if he was going to tell anyone what he was doing, it might be you, right?”

Despite Undyne’s very blatant attempts not to sound accusatory, the implication was still there. Or, maybe it was _because_ she was trying so hard not to sound accusatory that it sounded like an accusation.

Still, Papyrus knew his friends, and certainly knew that they didn’t actually think he’d have any involvement with bringing harm to the Underground!

“WELL, I DO UNDERSTAND YOUR LINE OF LOGIC, BUT THE LAST TIME WE SPOKE TOGETHER WAS AT THE PARTY AND, UM... WELL, I THINK UNDYNE CAN VOUCH FOR ME WHEN I SAY THAT THE TOPIC OF DISCUSSION WASN’T HIS ACTIVITIES.”

Even if they had moved past it, it was still a sore spot for the two of them. Undyne simply gave a grunt of approval, leaving an awkward tension to slowly fill the room. A tension that was cleaved in two by a loud yawn.

“guess that’s cleared up then. so, we should probably explain what we’ve found... unless you got somethin’ to do, papyrus?”

Papyrus tapped his fingers together, trying not to come across as eager to get away from the situation. He really did want to be involved, but...

“WELL, I WAS HOPING TO CALL ASGORE, JUST TO BE SURE THAT HE’S ALRIGHT? I CAN PUT MY OTHER PLANS ASIDE, BUT I REALLY WOULD PREFER TO CHECK ON HIM FIRST.”

The three of them looked at him with confused expressions. Had they not heard? He didn’t expect that 02 had been spreading the word around, but was he really the only person that had been contacted?

“AH, WELL, WE WERE AT THE COMMUNITY GARDEN THE OTHER DAY AND, WELL... ASGORE PUSHED HIMSELF TOO HARD AND COLLAPSED FROM THE HEAT.”

A little blunt, but there was no point in sugarcoating the issue. Still, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt when he saw how horrified Alphys and Undyne were.

“WHAT? Why didn’t he call anyone?!”

“I DON’T THINK HE WAS FEELING QUITE UP TO IT... ONE OF THE ROYAL GUARDS, 02, TOOK HIM HOME AND CONFIRMED THAT HE WAS ALRIGHT, JUST RESTING.”

Alphys didn’t have anything to add other than a few mumbled “oh gosh”es. Undyne processed what Papyrus had said for a moment, then started marching towards the door.

“U-Undyne, wait! Where are you-”

“Asgore needs a REAL talking to! After all the lectures he gave ME about not overheating, he goes and does THAT?!”

Slightly regretting having brought the issue up, Papyrus tried to remedy the situation.

“UNDYNE, I KNOW THAT ASGORE’S ACTIONS WEREN’T VERY WELL THOUGHT OUT, BUT PLEASE DON’T GO OVER THERE AND BERATE HIM!”

She was still visibly upset, but she stopped and restrained herself. She took a deep breath and looked over to Papyrus; she was still scowling, but she wasn’t plunging forward, which was a good start.

“HE’S... WELL, HE’S HAVING SOMETHING OF A DIFFICULT TIME RIGHT NOW. I AGREE THAT HE SHOULDN’T BE BEHAVING THE WAY THAT HE IS, BUT IT’S NOT COMING FROM A PLACE OF IGNORANCE. HE’S JUST... STRUGGLING A LITTLE.”

Undyne didn’t catch on, especially given how vague Papyrus was being. She ruminated for a minute before a flash of realization hit her.

“Oh. Ohhhh. Guess it really HAS been a year, huh? I didn’t... ah, thanks, Papyrus. I won’t push him too hard.”

They smiled warmly at each other for a second, before Undyne’s smile turned to one of fierce determination.

“Still, I’m gonna make sure he knows NOT to put himself in that kind of danger again! No matter how much time it takes, I’m NOT leaving that house until I see PROGRESS!”

He remembered a few rough patches that he had hit back in the Underground; ones that had been impossible to handle on his own. He also remembered Undyne coming along to give him the same degree of support, and standing by him when he really needed her to be there.

Asgore was in good hands.

“PLEASE, TELL HIM THAT WE WISH HIM WELL!”

Undyne gave him a thumbs up and gave Alphys a quick peck before tearing her way through the front door. At the very least, she forgot to close it, so it didn't end up being yanked out of the frame again!

He quickly closed the door, before returning to the kitchen to sit with sans and Alphys.

“SO... I SUPPOSE WE SHOULD PROBABLY RETURN TO THE DISCUSSION ABOUT THE UNDERGROUND?”

Alphys nodded, before turning to sans. He didn’t put anything forward, so she took it upon herself to explain.

“O-okay, so... I’ve been keeping an eye on the Underground since we, uh, got out. N-not, like, going there, just... well, monitoring the place, keeping an eye on the CORE... th-that kind of stuff. It’s been relatively stable, until... r-recently.”

“yeah. when it was just breakin’ stuff and messin’ around, we could say ‘eh, fair enough, he needs somethin’ to do i guess’, but it’s more than that now. he’s been breakin’ into alph’s real lab, and he’s even messin’ around with the core.”

That was worrying, to say the least. Papyrus knew for a fact that Flowey wouldn’t go anywhere near the CORE unless he absolutely needed to, which meant that he was planning something specific.

“DOES THE CORE HAVE ANY PROPERTIES BEYOND CREATING MAGICAL ELECTRICITY? IS IT CAPABLE OF DOING ANYTHING ELSE?”

“W-well... it’s k-kinda hard to tell? It’s, um... we never allowed anyone to mess too much with the inner workings; for some reason, n-no one seems to have any idea a-as to how it was built... so, we’re working with something highly dangerous and, uh, we only really understand how to keep it running.”

Oh. Well, that wasn’t the answer he was hoping for. He turned to sans, hoping for some degree of clarification.

“like she says. pretty much no one knows how it works. not like it makes much of a difference; don’t think he’d be able to use it even if he did know what it could do.”

So... they were no closer to figuring anything out, basically.

“i mean, not like it really matters, right? we could sit here guessin’, but that won’t get us anywhere. he’s still messin’ with dangerous stuff, and someone’s gotta put a stop to it.”

Alphys’ head whipped around to him so fast that Papyrus was legitimately a little concerned that she might have hurt herself.

“Y-you’re not seriously suggesting...?”

“yup. there’s only one person with the know-how and the experience to put a stop to this.”

He slipped off of his chair, before approaching Papyrus. His expression was grim, the lights in his eyesockets gone. As soon as he actually reached Papyrus, however, they returned and his smile widened.

“thankfully, he’s right here. pretty sure that papyrus is the only person who could convince him to knock it off... since you two are _buds_ and all.”

With a wink, he made his way towards the door. Papyrus had never seen Alphys glare so viciously at someone; had she thought that he had been suggesting her, and was feeling put out by his prank? Or... could he have been implying...?

“that’s basically all i got. seein’ as i’ve got nothin’ more to contribute, i’m gonna head to bed.”

“SANS, IT’S NOT EVEN NOON!”

“there’s a meteor shower tonight, gotta make sure i get enough sleep.”

Papyrus begrudgingly accepted sans’ explanation (he knew that sans _loved_ to watch meteor showers, and he couldn’t deny him something that meant so much to him). With a thumbs up, sans made his way upstairs.

When he turned back around, Papyrus noticed that Alphys was still huffing. Evidently, she did not appreciate sans’ prank.

“...A-Anyway... I g-guess that’s all I have to offer, too? I-I mean, he did mess around in my lab, b-but I d-don’t think there’s much of value in there?”

Papyrus had a general idea of what was in Alphys’ real lab; he had offered to help with moving certain equipment to Alphys’ new lab on the surface (As Undyne’s moving methods weren’t the best for fragile equipment). He didn’t go snooping without permission, but it was very easy to get lost when the lights didn’t work. As a result, he stumbled on a few things that he figured that he wasn’t supposed to see.

Admittedly, his curiosity _did_ get the better of him, and he couldn’t attribute his further findings to ignorance. He had forgotten about that, until now; a few things were clicking into place, as though he was slotting the final few pieces into a puzzle.

“WELL, I DON’T EXACTLY KNOW MUCH ABOUT YOUR EQUIPMENT, BUT I DOUBT THAT THAT’S WHY HE’D BE IN YOUR LAB. OUTSIDE OF THAT, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE IN THERE?”

“U-um... nothing outside of a f-few log entries?”

Well, if she wasn’t willing to share, he wasn’t going to push her; it wasn’t his business to have known in the first place.

“I SEE. IN THAT CASE, I WILL SIMPLY HAVE TO FIND THE TRUTH THROUGH THE CLASSIC METHOD OF FRIENDLY DISCUSSION!”

He noted that Alphys seemed very relieved that he had changed the subject. He offered a cup of tea to calm her nerves, but she politely declined.

“I-I should probably get back... there’s a lot of time between now and tomorrow, right? I think i-it’d be for the best if I headed back to keep an eye on things... j-just in case there are any, um, major developments.”

He had to admit, that was a good idea; even if he truly believed that he could get through to his friend, there was no harm in having a solid understanding of the situation beforehand, if possible.

He offered her a ride home and, though she seemed a touch hesitant, she accepted. The two headed to his car and began the drive to her house.

Naturally, the ride was awkward; Papyrus and Alphys were quite different, so he was never too sure how to go about starting conversation with her. Alphys, on the other hand, still had difficulty starting conversations in general.

“SO... HAVE YOU MADE ANY PROGRESS WITH YOUR SCIENTIFIC WORK?”

It was a terrible way to start conversation; he knew that it was too broad of a question for her to give any specific answers, but he hoped that it would prompt her to start a discussion on her own terms.

“Oh, it’s, uh... well, g-good, I guess? I’m kinda working on a few different projects right now, s-so... I don’t actually have much to report?”

He figured that was a long shot; he actually quite enjoyed listening to Alphys talking about science. He just didn’t have enough of an understanding of it to make any meaningful contributions himself.

No, if he wanted this conversation to move forward, there was only one way to go about it. Well, one way that he was confident in, at least.

“HAVE YOU BEEN WATCHING MANY OF YOUR CARTOONS SINCE YOU GOT UP TO THE SURFACE?”

Her face lit up, and after a brief explanation that 'animé and cartoons aren't the same thing', she launched into an explanation of how varied the selections were on the surface, and how she had been catching up on all of the amazing works that she had been missing out on.

Even if he knew that he had unleashed something, he appreciated her enthusiasm, and certainly wouldn’t deny her the chance to be open about something she loved.

“A-Actually, I’ve been thinking... th-there’s this one series that U-Undyne isn’t very fond of because it d-doesn’t have much action in it, b-but maybe... i-if you wanted...?”

As rare as it was for Alphys to be so open about her enthusiasm with others, it was much rarer for her to be so upfront about asking someone to hang out. Rare enough, in fact, that he could count on his hand the number of times that they actually _had_ hung out together.

As such, even if he wasn’t wholly fond of the idea (given how different their tastes were when it came to television), he couldn’t bring himself to say no. He supposed that they could watch a few episodes before he’d excuse himself to get some training done before tomorrow.

“I’M CERTAINLY WILLING TO GIVE ANYTHING A TRY!”

He couldn’t fault her excitement as they pulled up to the house; she fumbled about for her keys, and ran in to set everything up. He followed, making the popcorn, and the two quickly sat themselves down to watch the show.

When the first episode finished, Papyrus had to admit that it hadn’t been too bad. It still seemed a little juvenile to him, but he had found himself laughing at some of the jokes, and he quite liked the protagonist. He admitted that one more episode couldn’t hurt.

He knew well that that was such an easy trap to fall into, and yet he had fallen victim to it himself; he made that same concession several more times.

Even if the majority of her cartoons weren’t quite his thing, he had to admit that this one was rather fun to watch; this one looked rather different, and wasn't nearly as confusing as the others tended to be. Plus, he appreciated any chance he could take to get closer to his friends.

They had many discussions and debates as they watched; Alphys was building theories around the origins of the protagonist, while Papyrus couldn’t help but build a few of his own theories on whether or not his nemesis would be redeemed.

Papyrus didn’t realize how long he had been there until he noticed a suspicious drop in the amount of natural light in the room. Sure enough...

“OH MY, IT’S ALREADY 7PM?!”

He had planned on getting to sleep at 8PM, as he was hoping to leave early to enter the Underground at a relatively reasonable time. He supposed that combat training was out the window.

“I’M SO SORRY, BUT I REALLY MUST BE GOING! STILL, I’VE ENJOYED HANGING OUT WITH YOU, WE REALLY MUST DO THIS AGAIN SOON!”

“Oh, uh... of course! I’ll message you over the Undernet and we can figure something out! And, um, I'll let you know in the morning if there's anything out of the ordinary before you go!”

He was glad to have spent time with her; despite how close he was with Undyne, he hadn’t actually spent much time with Alphys, and even at that, they weren’t really close. Even if it had disrupted the very few plans he had, he supposed he didn’t mind too much.

Besides, it was as sans said; Papyrus had a solid chance of making progress in the Underground because he was willing to give everyone a chance, even if he didn’t quite understand or even agree with them. He had given Alphys' cartoons a chance, and ended up having a great time and actually developing his friendship with her a little further.

As he left Alphys’ house, he felt confident. He didn’t know what was going on, and he honestly couldn’t deny that there was a decent chance that there was some foul play being planned. Still, as long as he kept an open mind and offered his friend the support that he needed...

He was going to get through to Flowey. He didn’t know how, but he knew that he could do it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not gonna lie, I didn't 100% know what I was going to do with this chapter, but the end result was actually pretty surprising. Originally, I hadn't planned for Undyne to be there at all, nor had I planned on having it end with Papyrus and Alphys watching animé together. Crazy how much things can change as you go!
> 
> I'm gonna point out that I know nothing about animé, so I couldn't really go into depth about it much. If anyone was wondering, I had Kirby: Right Back at Ya! in mind when I was describing it. I'm not a fan of just throwing in generic descriptions, but I also didn't want to include any existing brands in the story, so we ended up with... well, what we ended up with.
> 
> Also... fonts. This one had a lot of talking, AND it had both sans and Papyrus in significant roles. Ow.


	28. Beginning with Bewilderment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On Papyrus' first official mission as part of the Royal Guard, there's just a slight hint of confusion.
> 
> Still, nothing's going to get in his way!

As planned, Papyrus was up early, ready to make his way to Mt. Ebott. He felt determined; he couldn’t pretend that he had any real plan, and knew well that the majority of his decisions were going to be made in the moment, but he knew that he was going to leave the Underground having gotten through to Flowey somehow.

He checked his phone and saw a barrage of texts that had been sent by Alphys:

“hey!!!”

“so, um”

“no major developments in the underground :O”

“unless you count one of the puzzles in the ruins being tampered with a major development haha”

“wait actually would you think of that as something really bad??”

“sorry i didn’t mean it like that i was just making a joke T_T”

“i know puzzles can be super fun and that messing with them is a jerk move”

“but yeah nothing else happened last night”

“speaking of last night...”

“if you’re cool with it we could hang out sometime next week?”

“it’s cool if you’ve got stuff to do, i know you’re pretty busy”

“but offer’s there if you want!!!”

He sent a quick reply, telling her that he hadn’t taken any offense to her joke and that he would be happy to hang out again soon. He felt a touch guilty, but put the phone on silent before heading to his car. He knew that it was somewhat rude, but her sporadic texting style could be quite disruptive to his thought process, and he knew that Flowey would require his full attention.

He quickly checked the patrol roster once more to confirm that Doggo was his partner, and made his way over to the dogs’ apartment building to offer him a ride there.

To his surprise, however, Doggo was standing outside when he arrived; Papyrus initially thought that he had also prepared himself early, but the pyjamas he wore suggested otherwise. Papyrus came to a stop outside of the building, waving over to Doggo.

Doggo slowly (and tiredly) made his way over. For someone that was due to be on patrol, he didn’t seem very... completely conscious.

“Hey there pal... guess Undyne hasn’t called ya?”

Confused, Papyrus pulled out his phone. Four missed calls from Undyne.

Doggo chuckled, before yawning loudly.

“Figured it’d be something simple like that. Anyways, she called me last night and told me that I was off patrols for today. Seemed fine and dandy, but then I get a call about ten minutes ago telling me that she couldn’t get through to you... not gonna lie, it’s a real relief to know you’re still going.”

“AH, I, ER... WELL, I WANTED TO GIVE THE PATROL MY FULL FOCUS, AND I THOUGHT THAT HAVING MY PHONE ON WOULD MAKE THAT DIFFICULT. I HADN’T CONSIDERED THAT UNDYNE MIGHT NEED TO CONTACT ME...”

Doggo stretched, doing very little to hide his tiredness. At the very least, he didn’t seem too disgruntled for how early he had woken up.

“Don’t worry about it too much. Just, uh... let her know if you’re gonna have to keep your phone off. She tends to check in on us a lot, says that she has to be sure we’re not slacking off. Probably not something she has to worry about as far as you’re concerned, but you know how she can be...”

Papyrus thanked Doggo, allowing the poor fellow to return to his disturbed slumber. Not wanting it to be interrupted again, he quickly dialled Undyne’s number. There was only one ring.

“PAPYRUS! Is something going on? What’s happening over there?!”

Feeling very thankful for his lack of eardrums, Papyrus took a second to recover before formulating an answer. Unfortunately, that second was all Undyne needed to continue, though mercifully at a more reasonable volume.

“Alphie told me last night that you were gonna head out early this morning, but she didn’t actually tell me when, and I can’t ask her NOW ‘cause I know she’ll still be asleep, so when you didn’t respond I thought you’d probably left already-”

“UNDYNE, UNDYNE, RELAX! I’M FINE, I HAVEN’T EVEN REALLY SET OUT TOWARDS MT. EBOTT YET! I HAD PUT MY PHONE ON SILENT TO ENSURE THAT I WAS GIVING THE PROBLEM MY FULL ATTENTION WHEN I HAD GOTTEN THERE!”

After a brief silence, Undyne continued.

“Oh. That, uh... that makes sense. Whoops. Gonna have to apologize to Doggo...”

“AH, ACTUALLY, I WAS JUST SPEAKING TO HIM! IT WAS HIM THAT TOLD ME TO CHECK MY PHONE! IF YOU DO PLAN ON APOLOGIZING, I’D SUGGEST LEAVING IT FOR A FEW HOURS, HE SEEMED VERY KEEN ON RETURNING TO BED.”

“Yeah, I, uh... probably should have made it a little clearer that I was taking Doggo off of patrols today. Alphie mentioned that you guys talked about how you were the only one who could convince our little culprit to knock it off, so I figured that having Doggo there would only complicate things. Guess I should have run that one by you first...”

“WELL, NO HARM DONE! I SHOULD PROBABLY LET YOU KNOW NOW THAT I’LL HAVE MY PHONE OFF; FLOWEY DOESN’T LIKE TO BE INTERRUPTED BY PHONE CALLS OR TEXTS.”

“Yeah, I wonder why...”

Tensions rose immediately, and Papyrus wasn’t quite sure how to respond; he never really was as far as Flowey was involved. Papyrus didn’t like the fact that everyone constantly spoke so rudely about him, but he knew that he was pretty much the only one willing to stand in Flowey’s corner, and that any arguments in his friend’s favour would be torn down immediately, if not dismissed without a second thought.

“Sorry, sorry. I’m trying to wrap my head around this friendship of yours, it’s just... REALLY not easy.”

“DON’T WORRY, UNDYNE, I KNOW THAT YOU’RE TRYING. I DO KNOW THAT FLOWEY’S ATTITUDE CAN BE... WELL, OFF-PUTTING, TO SAY THE LEAST. BUT... WELL, HE’S GOT A LOT MORE TO HIM THAN WHAT HE ALLOWS OTHERS TO SEE.”

“I... hmph. I guess it’s not something I’m gonna understand over the phone. Guess it’s true that you’re the only one who can solve all this.”

He knew that convincing others of Flowey’s nuances would be difficult, but... well, baby steps. He appreciated that Undyne was _trying_ ; it didn’t seem like much, but the fact that she was even entertaining the notion of Flowey having good in him showed tremendous progress. Perhaps not enough for the three of them to hang out (That would also require getting Flowey on-board, which would be no easy feat in itself), but he knew that she was willing to put more effort in, even if it was most likely only for his own sake.

“WELL, GIVEN THE APPARENT URGENCY, I SUPPOSE THAT I AM! AND I’M NOT GOING TO LET ANYONE DOWN!”

“Right! Still, though... be careful, okay?”

To think, at one point Papyrus would have found such a request insulting. Still, he knew that Undyne meant well; their friendship was important to her, and it would be wrong to invalidate her concerns. Plus, he knew that she was doing her best to see things from his perspective; it was only fair that he extend the same courtesy.

“OF COURSE! I’M GOING TO DO EVERYTHING IN MY POWER TO FIX THINGS HERE, BUT IF I FIND MYSELF INCAPABLE, I PROMISE I’LL STAY SAFE. OKAY, UNDYNE?”

“Okay, Papyrus.”

Another short silence followed, though this one was much more comfortable. Of course, Undyne didn’t really _do_ comfortable silences.

“Well? Get to it, then! That’s an order from your CAPTAIN! There’s no slacking off in the Royal Guard!”

“YES, CAPTAIN! I SHALL FULFIL MY DUTIES POST HASTE!”

With that, he hung up the phone and began his journey towards Mt. Ebott. He arrived and began the (admittedly somewhat arduous) trek to the top, a giant gaping cavern before him. He wondered why the other members of the Royal Guard hadn’t installed a ladder; he would normally have gone in through the entrance where the barrier had been, but the Ruins were inaccessible from there, and he knew he had to explore _all_ of the Underground if he was going to do his job properly.

He didn’t know what lay ahead, but he knew without a shadow of doubt that he was ready. Not wanting to let Undyne down, he leapt in without hesitation. It occurred to him that perhaps _some_ hesitation wouldn’t have gone amiss, as it was quite a long fall.

Thankfully, he landed in a bed of flowers. They didn’t do the _greatest_ job of cushioning the fall, but he wasn’t injured, which was enough for now.

“Hi. Seems as if everyone-”

He looked up to see a familiar face, though he wasn’t used to such a soft tone coming from said face. Of course, the softness immediately disappeared when they realized who they were talking to.

“Oh. Golly, Papyrus, I know you like to show up early, but you’re not due for another twelve days!”

The softness had been replaced with a practised, almost mockingly saccharine tone.

“Why, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you weren’t even here on a friendly visit!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, it's been... like, a week. Apologies, everyone! Being kept quite busy as of late!
> 
> As for this chapter, I had to squeeze in one last interaction between Papyrus and Undyne, even if it was just over the phone. Their friendship is an integral part of this fic, and I just wanted one last indication that things are going well, and that they've both learned a lot.
> 
> Doggo, admittedly, isn't as important to the story in the grand scheme of things, but oh well.
> 
> Odd place to leave off, but I really wanted to get a chapter out, given how it's been taking a while. The situation between Flowey and Papyrus is going to take up a lot of space, and the chapter would probably end up being too long if I continued past where it was. It's basically the most reasonable place I can cut things off for this chapter.
> 
> Thanks to everybody for sticking around this long! We're almost there, and I appreciate all of the comments, kudos and support you've been giving in the meantime!


	29. Sentimental Surveillance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus meets with Flowey and begins his patrol of the Underground!
> 
> Of course, that's going to inspire some reminiscence and some thought-provoking conversations...

Papyrus knew that he would have to tread carefully; Flowey seemed to be in one of his more volatile moods. One wrong move and he’d either clam up or just leave altogether.

“W-WELL... IT’S TRUE THAT I’M NOT HERE SOLELY ON A FRIENDLY VISIT. IN FACT, I ACTUALLY HAVE SOME EXCITING NEWS!”

“Is that so? Still, even though I can’t wait to hear it, you might have to save it for another time, Papyrus; the Royal Guard will be here soon, and they just _love_ to interrupt anything even _remotely_ interesting that happens down here!”

Papyrus, of course, knew that Flowey was being sarcastic about the Royal Guard. He just hoped that he wasn’t being sarcastic (or, at least, _as_ sarcastic) about wanting to hear what he had to say.

“I’M PRETTY SURE THAT WE WON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT INTERRUPTIONS!”

Papyrus had only intended to make a joke to lead into his announcement, though Flowey didn’t seem to find it very funny.

“You’re sure, are you, Papyrus? Well, just in case your exciting news let this teensy fact slip from your mind...”

Although his smile had seemed insincere to begin with, the hateful look on his face left none of his feelings up to interpretation.

“I spend _every single second_ down here. I know that the Royal Guard are going to show up in twenty seven minutes. I know exactly where they patrol, exactly where they look... every. Single. DETAIL. I know exactly when you’re supposed to arrive for your visit; twelve days, two hours and fourteen minutes.”

Flowey’s expression began to mellow out, though he still seemed very sour.

“I know this place better than anyone. Save the optimism for your brother or something.”

Papyrus paused for a moment; despite his best efforts, he was still slipping up. He understood why Flowey was upset (Or, at least, he felt like he understood), and latched onto the thought. He would have to keep that in consideration before saying anything else.

“I DIDN’T MEAN TO IMPLY THAT I KNEW MORE ABOUT THE UNDERGROUND THAN YOU, FLOWEY; YOU’VE ALWAYS KNOWN MORE ABOUT IT THAN ANYBODY!”

Flowey didn’t seem too enthusiastic about the compliment. Papyrus pressed onward, excited to share his news and, hopefully, clarify that he had not meant to insult his friend.

“BUT... THE REASON I’M SO SURE THAT THE ROYAL GUARD WON’T SHOW UP...”

Flowey perked up when Papyrus started, and it was clear that Papyrus had piqued his interest. Papyrus considered simply saying that the Royal Guard was already there, but realized immediately that that could _very_ easily be misinterpreted. Under the guise of keeping Flowey in suspense, he thought about how he should phrase the news.

“...IS BECAUSE ONLY ONE MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD IS PATROLLING THE UNDERGROUND TODAY. THEIR NEWEST RECRUIT!”

Papyrus was hopeful that he had struck the right balance in his hint; it was important that it not be too ambiguous. If Flowey got the wrong idea, thinking that the Royal Guard were going to find him or, even worse, that Papyrus was helping them to do so, he would leave, and it would be a _long_ time before Papyrus would see him again.

Still, Papyrus also wanted him to come to the conclusion by himself. Even if it would be easier, he wanted to see Flowey’s reaction when he realized that the Great Papyrus had finally become a member of the Royal Guard!

Thankfully, Flowey stayed put. He narrowed his eyes, as though expecting Papyrus to either proclaim that it was all a jape (Which he wouldn’t have done, because Papyrus knew that Flowey did _not_ like to be the subject of japery, only the perpetrator) or to elaborate further. He was only met with a proud smile.

It was then that the penny dropped.

“Wait... WHAT? _YOU’RE_ a member of the Royal Guard?”

Although Papyrus would have liked it if Flowey didn’t seem so sceptical, he supposed it was a reasonable reaction. Flowey barely trusted anyone, so to be met with such news, even by the most trustworthy monster he knew, was surely a surprise.

“CORRECT! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE FINALLY ACHIEVED MY DREAM OF BECOMING A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD! EVER SINCE THE INDUCTION CEREMONY, I’VE BEEN SPENDING SO MUCH TIME WITH THE OTHER GUARDS, NOT TO MENTION-”

“Golly, Papyrus, it sure sounds like you’ve been busy lately! With all of your _new friends_ , all of your important business...”

Papyrus knew that tone. The “I’m upset/angry with you but I’m not going to tell you why, and if you don’t figure it out you can leave me alone until you do” tone.

Papyrus tried to glean some information from Flowey’s expression and mannerisms. Unfortunately, being a flower with a very good poker face, that was no easy feat. There were several different things that could be upsetting Flowey, so settling on any one specific problem would be a gamble. Still, he wanted to reassure his friend, and he couldn’t do that without trying _something_.

“W-WELL... I’LL ADMIT THAT I’VE BEEN KEEPING MYSELF OCCUPIED MOST DAYS. STILL, I’LL ALWAYS HAVE TIME FOR MY CLOSEST FRIENDS! IN FACT, ISN’T IT EXCITING THAT I’LL GET TO VISIT YOU MORE OFTEN NOW?”

“Oh, of course it is, Papyrus! As per usual, _you’ll_ visit _me_. Until you get bored, of course, then you’ll start cutting the visits short, since you see me enough in work anyway, right? Then you’ll have your busy days, where you can’t stop to chat... do you _really_ think I don’t know where you’re going with this, Papyrus?”

“WHAT I THINK IS THAT, PERHAPS, I’VE COMMUNICATED MY DESIRES INCORRECTLY! AS EXCITED AS I AM TO BE A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD, I’LL STILL BE THE GREAT PAPYRUS THAT YOU ALWAYS KNEW, REGARDLESS OF ANY EXTRA DUTIES OR FRIENDSHIPS I MAY TAKE ON!”

“Is that so? Well, let me tell you something, Papyrus: _anyone_ can end up being boring. If they have no way to progress, they stagnate. I can’t do anything interesting, I can’t leave here without permission, I can’t change... eventually, Papyrus, it’ll all be the same. I’ll be spouting the same lines, doing the same things... at some point, you’ll start a conversation with me and all that will go through your head is ‘Oh, I’ve heard this one before’. Sure, it might take longer for that to happen to you, but it will, Papyrus. You can trust me on that.”

“WHILE I DO TRUST YOU, I DON’T THINK THAT I’LL EVER FEEL THAT WAY. YOU’RE MY FRIEND, FLOWEY, AND I’M NOT GOING TO GIVE UP ON YOU!”

“Yeah. Good luck with that.”

Before Papyrus could make another attempt to dissuade him, Flowey dove under the ground and disappeared. Papyrus considered calling after him, but decided not to; perhaps a little while to think would help Flowey to come around.

In the meantime, Papyrus _did_ have duties to attend to! He made his way through the Ruins, and it occurred to him that he had never actually been through there in all of his time in the Underground. He’d have to be extra thorough; he didn’t want to miss anything!

His search of the Ruins was uneventful; outside of the plant life having grown wild (most likely because there was no longer a caretaker in the Ruins), nothing seemed out of place.

Of course, as Alphys had mentioned, one of the puzzles had been tampered with: he made his way into a series of rooms that required switches of a certain colour to be pressed. Each of the switches, however, had been wrapped up. When Papyrus went to remove the cloths covering the switches, he noticed that they had been tied on with very elaborate knots; as such, he had no choice but to brute force the puzzle by guessing. In all honesty, it had only served as a minor inconvenience.

Eventually, he found himself reaching a black tree, with what looked like a house behind it. As he walked toward the tree, he noticed a lone flower beneath it, looking up at the house. He hadn’t noticed Papyrus’ approach. It seemed as though he was speaking to himself, although Papyrus could tell that he had missed at least some of the one-person conversation.

“...stupid, I can go in there whenever I want. I just don’t want to, not with him snooping around.”

It was quite obvious that this conversation was _not_ meant to be shared; Papyrus didn’t want to eavesdrop, especially not when Flowey was already on edge. As such, Papyrus figured that the best course of action would be to approach Flowey; even if Flowey wasn’t ready to talk yet, it would be an opportunity for him to set a healthy boundary if he wasn’t comfortable with Papyrus going into the house!

Although, he did hope that Flowey wouldn’t set such a boundary. It would make getting to Snowdin quite difficult.

He stepped forward, allowing his boots to hit the ground with a little more force than usual to alert Flowey to his presence. The flower whirled around, and did not seem happy that his thoughts had been interrupted.

“Took you long enough to get here. What, did you get lost or something?”

“NOT AT ALL; AS YOU KNOW, I HAVE A MARVELLOUS SENSE OF DIRECTION! HOWEVER... SOMEONE HAS VANDALIZED ONE OF THE TRAPS, WHICH SLOWED ME DOWN CONSIDERABLY! I WOULD HAVE BEEN ANNOYED BY SUCH DEFACEMENT IF NOT FOR HOW CLEVERLY IT WAS DONE!”

Even though they both knew who had messed with the puzzle, neither made any indication as to who the culprit was. The sides of Flowey’s mouth curled ever so slightly upward.

“Huh. Wonder how that happened?”

Sadly, Flowey’s smile didn’t last. His expression returned to one of neutrality, before he glanced back at the house for a moment.

“If you’re wondering, there’s nothing interesting in there. If you wanna get to Snowdin, you should just go straight across to the basement.”

Oh dear. That put him into something of a conundrum.

On the one hand, he really didn’t want to neglect his duties, especially on his first proper day on the job. On the other hand, he didn’t want Flowey to think that his advice would be so easily disregarded...

“THANK YOU, FLOWEY. YOUR HELP IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!”

Once again, his compliment didn’t have the desired effect. This time, however, all he got was a “Yeah, whatever.”, which seemed to be a step in the right direction!

Papyrus made his way up the stairs, very aware of Flowey’s intense gaze on him the entire time. He shook away the uneasy feeling before stepping into the house.

It seemed as though no one had been there for a while; while it had certainly been lived in within his lifetime, it had been a while since anyone had been through, as was evidenced by a thick layer of dust coating everything that he could see, outside of some boot markings having been left by the other guards.

As tempted as Papyrus was to take a look around what could only be Toriel’s house, he settled on doing no more than taking in his surroundings for a moment before heading down to the basement. He couldn’t allow his curiosity to get in the way of his friendship, after all!

He walked through an extremely long tunnel, before reaching a large door. Flowey was already waiting for him.

“I bet you were curious, weren’t you, Papyrus?”

“WELL... A LITTLE, IF I’M HONEST. I KNOW THAT TORIEL USED TO LIVE THERE, AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN INTERESTING TO LOOK AROUND. STILL, I TRUST YOU WHEN YOU SAY THAT THERE’S NOTHING INTERESTING IN THERE, SO I WASTED NO TIME!”

Flowey was back to wearing his sickeningly sweet smile.

“I bet it feels real great, doesn’t it, Papyrus? You knew that I didn’t want you to snoop around there, so you didn’t! But how long will that last?”

“I... DON’T UNDERSTAND?”

“You’re going through your first run through the Ruins. This time, you listened to me, and didn’t look around there. But, like you said, you’re curious. How many times will you go through there before you decide that ‘It can’t be _thaaaaaaaat_ bad, right?’ and take a quick peek? How long until you decide that ‘Hey, I’m the one patrolling here, I’ll look where I please?’”

“THAT’S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN, FLOWEY! IF YOU DON’T WANT ME TO GO IN THERE, I’M NOT GOING TO GO IN THERE!”

“You’ll cave eventually, Papyrus. Everyone does.”

Once again, Flowey disappeared before Papyrus could offer any rebuttal. He had to admit, that was getting rather frustrating.

Still, he pressed onward. He lingered for a moment at the door, silently wishing for sans and Toriel to have a nice, relaxing day, before making his way through to Snowdin.

Outside of being empty, it looked just as he had remembered it. As he patrolled, he couldn’t help but allow a wave of nostalgia to wash over him. To think, it had been an entire year, yet this place still felt like home.

When he’d visit Flowey, they would occasionally sit together in Snowdin, but this was the first time since he had left the Underground that he would really be thorough in looking around.

All of his puzzles had been untouched; they were all in perfect working order (Papyrus made his puzzles to last, after all!), though the traps still had not been recalibrated. Papyrus did so himself, for old time’s sake; he made a mental note to tell sans that he had done it, before moving forward.

He thought back to when he had first met Frisk; he had to admit that, even if his puzzles were exceptional... they probably _were_ a little too dangerous for someone so young. He couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt at the thought, and was glad that Frisk had been clever enough to avoid being hurt.

More memories flooded into his mind as he reached Snowdin Town; he couldn’t deny that he spent far longer than was necessary looking around. His trip ground to a halt when he reached his own house, though.

From the outside, it was exactly as they had left it; sans’ mailbox was still overflowing, the wreath was still hanging on the door, even the lights were still up, though they were off, of course.

He stepped inside and couldn’t deny that it was something of a sad sight to behold. The house was completely empty; all of the furniture had been removed except for the sink; there was very little trace of anyone having been there... except for a single sock on the floor, covered in sticky notes.

Papyrus remembered that he had left a few supplies in one of the drawers, on the off chance that anyone would ever need them. Even if no one would see it, he grabbed one last sticky note and stuck it with the others: _“IT’S BEEN A WHOLE YEAR, AND YOU HAVEN’T COME BACK FOR IT? IF NOT THIS ONE, WHICH SOCK IS LAYING ON THE FLOOR IN OUR HOUSE NOW?”_

He took a quick look inside the sink, and found an opening; a quick look around revealed nothing of importance, but he was still shocked that something like that had managed to evade his notice for the entirety of his life in the Underground.

Bidding the house farewell, he moved forward, before reaching the shed. He took a look around and felt... disgust. He had left Frisk in there after their first battle, where Frisk had struggled to keep up with Papyrus after he had turned their soul blue.

The little bowl for food and the less-than-cozy bed seemed so much more degrading than he had remembered; had he really thought this an appropriate place to hold _anyone_?

He shook the thoughts from his head before making his way to the spot where he had fought with Frisk. Another surge of guilt rushed through him; even though they had made amazing efforts to be his friend, he still initiated combat with them.

He remembered how worn out they had been after a few rounds of having their soul turned blue. How they had consumed a fair number of healing items trying to keep up with him; even if he wasn’t fighting to kill... he was pretty powerful, and Frisk was just a child.

And he had done all of this for his own benefit. Even if he hadn’t wished any real harm on Frisk, he would have captured them in order to achieve his dreams. That certainly didn’t seem like something a hero would do.

Papyrus was snapped from his thoughts by something sprouting up by his side. Flowey, of course, had a wide smile on his face.

“Golly, Papyrus! You were so excited when you started looking through Snowdin! What has you feeling so blue?”

Papyrus didn’t know if the wordplay was intentional (though, knowing Flowey, it probably was), but it still hurt. He didn’t answer, which only prompted Flowey to continue.

“I remember this place! This is where you fought Frisk, wasn’t it? You really did a number on them, I was surprised that they didn’t come out with anything broken!”

Although Papyrus’ expression grew more sorrowful, he still didn’t speak. Surprisingly, Flowey cut the act short; as he spoke, it seemed less directed at Papyrus and more like he was thinking out loud.

“Pretty much everyone gave Frisk a pretty terrible time, huh? Me, Asgore, Toriel, Undyne, Mettaton... even you. Everybody used them as this... crutch. We all looked at Frisk and we just saw... what we wanted. Crazy to think that they forgave everyone, isn’t it? I know I wouldn’t have.”

When Papyrus looked down at Flowey, he saw what seemed to be actual regret in the flower’s eyes.

“I... I THINK YOU’RE RIGHT, FLOWEY. ALMOST ALL OF US DID SOME TERRIBLE THINGS TO FRISK. EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE SO NICE TO ME... I STILL TRIED TO USE THEM AS A TICKET INTO THE ROYAL GUARD. I’M GLAD THAT THEY FORGAVE ME, BUT... I CAN’T HELP BUT WONDER IF I DESERVED IT.”

“Not your fault that Frisk is an idiot.”

Papyrus was shocked; the moment between them had been sombre, so to have Flowey return to his usual attitude was somewhat jarring.

“FLOWEY! FRISK IS A CHILD!”

“Yeah, a STUPID one! We all used them, Hell, _most_ of us tried to _kill_ them! But they still turn around and act as if nothing happened, all smiles and hugs. Don’t you think that’s even _kind of_ stupid? How far should this ‘nice person’ bit go? It’s one thing to say ‘Hey, you hurt my feelings, but I’ll look past it’, it’s another to say ‘Hey, you hunted me down and tried to kill me’, ‘Hey, you put me in mortal danger to make yourself feel better’, ‘Hey, you attacked me and broadcast it for people’s entertainment’... see what I’m saying?”

Papyrus _did_ see what he was saying. Frisk had so much love to give, but... he did have his doubts as to how much of it was deserved.

“I UNDERSTAND, FLOWEY. PERHAPS THEY DO EXTEND THEIR MERCY A LITTLE FURTHER THAN IS FAIR TO THEM FROM TIME TO TIME. STILL, FRISK HAS GIVEN US THE CHANCE TO MAKE THINGS RIGHT, AND TO BE THERE FOR THEM NOW. I DON’T THINK THAT’S STUPID.”

Flowey sighed, rolling his eyes.

“And what happens when mercy doesn’t work, Papyrus? What happens when they show mercy, and it gets them killed? What if it’s not just them that ends up dying? Sure, on paper, the best thing you can do is be nice and show mercy, but... sometimes, you’ve got to be mean, even if other people don’t like it. Sometimes you’ll wind up too deep into a dangerous situation, and mercy will do nothing but get you and the people you care about killed.”

Flowey stopped abruptly, as though he was saying something that he shouldn’t be. Papyrus knew that he was only seconds away from disappearing again, and thought it important to say something before that happened.

“WELL, FLOWEY... HONESTLY, YOU MAY HAVE A POINT. SOMETIMES, YOU CAN’T TALK YOUR WAY OUT OF TROUBLE, BUT... I STILL THINK THAT WE SHOULD DO OUR BEST TO SHOW MERCY WHENEVER WE CAN. EVEN IF IT’S NOT ALWAYS THE EASIEST OR EVEN SAFEST OPTION.”

Flowey didn’t give a response. He looked down for a moment, before burrowing away.

Papyrus was left on his own; as he made his way through to Waterfall, he couldn’t help but think further on what Flowey had said. About how horribly Frisk had been treated, and how it was miraculous that they had it in them to forgive at all, let alone accept the ones that had hurt them as a family. Even if Papyrus didn’t agree with Flowey’s assessment of Frisk’s character, he had to admit that he was no longer sure that he had really earned Frisk’s forgiveness, or if he (among many others) really _could_.

The trek to Waterfall took much longer than he had remembered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully I've captured Flowey properly in this chapter; I want to clarify on my thought process for him, but that should probably wait until the end of the fic, seeing as I might end up spoiling something involving him in the next chapter. I'll just say that, if he seems like his character has regressed, I hope that it will make more sense as we move forward.
> 
> Originally, when I started writing this, it was the penultimate chapter. However, as per usual, I wanted to be thorough, so there's probably going to be one more after the next. I won't put a specific number on it, though.
> 
> As for Frisk... hoo boy, that's a very complicated topic. At first, I figured that Snowdin would just be a quick "Hey, good times" area, but, really, Papyrus has learned a lot since his days in the Underground. Looking back on everything that happened, there's no doubt that he'd stop and say "That was actually pretty terrible."  
> And, of course, Flowey has his own input. Both characters have some solid points, but I didn't want to push a specific mindset onto the reader; it's mainly just another place for both the characters and the readers to look back on things a little differently.
> 
> On a lighter note, geez, there were a LOT of italics used in this chapter. Just thought I'd point that out.
> 
> Thanks for sticking around, everyone! We're almost there!


	30. Rumination and Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus travels through Waterfall, discussion with Flowey still fresh on his mind.
> 
> What's in store for him when they meet up this time?

Papyrus knew Waterfall like the back of his hand; it may not have been his home, but all of the time he had spent with Undyne allowed him to become very well-acquainted with the area.

He was glad for that; it was difficult enough to stay focused as it was. Even though his encounters with Flowey thus far had been brief, they had given him a lot to think about.

His mind was so preoccupied that he was moving on autopilot; whereas the trip through the Ruins was one of discovery, and the trip through Snowdin was one of reminiscence, this one was... ‘get the job done’. He wasn’t really taking anything in until he reached the room with the falling rocks.

Somehow, the area above the waterfall had been plugged up; not enough to actually prevent the rocks from passing through, though. The rocks would float across to the blocked areas, and would get stuck until the pressure would jettison them out to the area below. What was once a simple test of one’s dexterity had been warped into a perilous path, in which one wrong step could lead to a concussion, or worse.

Still, Papyrus was more than capable of making his way through. Looking up, he saw a dark area and recognized where he was; this was the area where he had first spoken to Undyne in person about Frisk.

A feeling of shame rose within him; from the side of their little family, Waterfall was a low point in Frisk’s journey. The way that he and Undyne had behaved at that point was borderline unforgivable. If Frisk hadn’t forgiven them, he’d say it _was_ unforgivable!

Firstly, there was his own behaviour; even after having become friends with Frisk, he couldn’t claim to have adjusted his behaviour properly yet. Even knowing that it was wrong, and even knowing that Frisk could be hurt, he chose his own dreams over their safety. Even if he had come up with a clever ruse to avoid the issue, he did so over simply telling Undyne the truth.

He wondered how things would have gone if he _had_ said something at the time. She may have been his best friend, but... he remembered how she acted, how she spoke. He knew that she’d let _nothing_ get in the way of her capturing Frisk. Would she have simply dismissed him for good? Or... perhaps...

Would she have made an example of him? How far would she have gone to make it clear that his behaviour, as far as she could see, was wrong? Traitorous, even? Would she have punished him, and, if so... how far would it have gone?

He tried to return his focus to the patrol. There was no use worrying about what Undyne _could_ have done, because he knew that she wouldn’t do any of that _now_. All it took was a show of mercy and a genuine attempt to earn her friendship!

...Granted, this mercy was shown to her following several attempts of cold-blooded murder. And, from what he could gather from her retelling of events, some very degrading comments. Plus, the attempt at friendship only came around after Papyrus had tricked her into giving them a real chance...

He sighed before moving on. He couldn’t really rationalize or justify the way things had gone up to this point. He was just glad that things were going well _now_. Now that Frisk had a loving home, Papyrus would do anything he could to be a solid big brotherly figure to them, and Undyne was much less dogmatic, and much more willing to listen to reason. He didn’t know if they could make things right, but he knew that, at the very least, they had been given the chance to try, and that both of them had grown enough to know not to squander it for anything.

...Even though, as Flowey had pointed out, Frisk’s judgement-

Frustrated, he tried to shake the thoughts from his head, to focus on ANYTHING else as he continued on. Thankfully, he came across more meddling in the following rooms that, at the very least, forced him to divert _some_ of his attention to them.

Of course, every bridge seed room had been messed with, the bridge seeds being stuck in inaccessible areas and the bell blossoms having been covered in what looked like bits of old pastry, which had crusted over and rendered them unusable.

With no other option, Papyrus found himself wading through the murky waters to proceed. It was _not_ a pleasant experience. He had to be careful, following the walls to ensure that he didn’t misstep and sink deeper, or, even worse, get stuck.

It served as another distraction, if nothing else.

He felt immense relief as he lifted his soggy boots from the water for the final time; he continued on, thinking of nothing but whether or not his clothes would survive the experience.

As he reached the dock, however, everything was replaced with shock. The place had been _totalled_.

He navigated around, seeing marks where spears had crashed into the docks, and gaping holes from where they had shot up from below. He knew that Undyne had been ferocious, but... seeing the aftermath was something else. He felt sick.

He didn’t dwell on it, and rushed through, finding his way to the next area as quickly as he could.

He pushed ahead, stopping to rest for a moment in a small room. He noticed a small table with nothing on it. He didn’t think too much of it; he was still a little queasy from the thoughts of what had happened at the dock.

Finally, however, he came across a welcome sight; a telescope. He took a quick peek and confirmed that some of the red ink had smudged.

He found himself smiling; obviously, the telescope was one of sans’ pranks (Which he may or may not have fallen for himself, a detail which wasn’t important), and he figured that Frisk was the only one who would have humoured him.

As he often did, Papyrus felt immensely glad that sans was so wise. For all of his faults, he always knew what someone needed. Even if that usually involved something ridiculous and entirely unproductive. But what mattered was that it always worked; sans was always looking out for people, and knew exactly how to lift their spirits when they needed it most.

That gave him a boost, at least; even if he and Undyne had failed, someone had done the right thing. All he could do now was try to follow that example.

With that thought, he pressed onward; although his spirits may have been slightly dampened by the thoughts lingering in his mind (As well as the fact that he himself was still damp), he wasn’t going to give up, not when he had a job to do and a friend to be there for!

As if on cue, he entered a room in which a large statue sat, having seen better days. Across from the statue sat the friend in question; Papyrus tried to get a read on him, but it was proving quite difficult. Flowey seemed very closed off, and his expression did not betray his feelings.

“HELLO AGAIN, FLOWEY! IS SOMETHING TROUBLING YOU?”

He was met with a sarcastic glare.

“Oh, thank you for asking, Papyrus! Don’t worry, though: other than not having a soul, being almost completely alone, being stuck in the Underground for the rest of my existence, being stuck in the body of a flower and knowing that this is just how it is and that I can’t change any of that... _yes, Papyrus, I’ve got a million other problems!_ ”

Well. He should have seen that coming.

“AH, I’M SORRY IF THAT WAS A LITTLE INSENSITIVE. IT’S JUST... YOU SEEMED TO BE PARTICULARLY UNSETTLED BY THAT STATUE. IS THERE SOMETHING ABOUT IT THAT YOU FIND DISCOMFORTING?”

Flowey sat for a moment, as if debating whether or not to tell Papyrus what was on his mind.

“Yeah. Yeah, there is. Ever wonder what the prince thinks about the statue being here?”

“WELL... I SUPPOSE IT CAN’T BE A NICE THING TO SEE. STILL, AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT’S JUST A STATUE, ISN’T IT? AS LONG AS THE PEOPLE OF THE UNDERGROUND REMEMBER HIM, DOES THE STATE OF THIS STATUE-”

“‘As long as they remember him?’ Papyrus, _NOBODY_ remembers. Do you have ANY idea how long this statue has been sitting here? But in all that time, not one person, _not a single one_ ever thought ‘Gee, let’s clean that statue up instead of just making a puzzle out of it’ or ‘Gee, let’s move this statue to somewhere where it won’t end up as a crumbling pile of rocks’ or _anything_ or than ‘Golly, remember that prince we had once? He coulda done some great stuff, such a disappointment that he DIED!’”

He seemed shocked at what had come out of his mouth. He recoiled, but, thankfully, didn’t leave this time. He just slouched a little.

“Sorry. I just... he was a good kid. He was a crybaby, and he made some pretty stupid decisions, but... he was a good person. Now I’m the only one left here and I... I know I’ll never be him. I _can’t._ ”

Although the moment of honest emotional vulnerability was surprising, it certainly wasn’t unwelcome.

“I... DON’T REALLY KNOW MUCH ABOUT WHAT THE PRINCE WAS LIKE WHEN HE WAS ALIVE. AND I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU’RE TRYING TO SAY; HE CERTAINLY WAS BELOVED, AND TO SEE THIS STATUE OF HIM IN SUCH DISREPAIR IS RATHER DISHEARTENING.”

“One way of putting it...”

“BUT... I CAN SAY WITH ABSOLUTE CERTAINTY THAT THE PRINCE WAS NOT FORGOTTEN.”

He wanted to give the comment a moment to sink in, but he didn’t wait for too long; if Flowey took offense (Which he most likely would), he would either lose his temper or disappear.

“ASGORE REMEMBERS.”

Sure enough, Flowey backed down. Although he still seemed unhappy with Papyrus’ assertion, the unhappiness was overridden by his curiosity. He waited for Papyrus to continue, and Papyrus obliged.

“EVERY YEAR, COMING UP TO THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE DEATHS OF THE PRINCE AND HIS SIBLING, ASGORE DOES SOMETHING TO COMMEMORATE THEM. THIS YEAR, HE WAS WORKING ON A COMMUNITY GARDEN AND WANTED TO DEDICATE IT TO THEM... HE ENDED UP PUSHING HIMSELF A LITTLE TOO FAR AND EXHAUSTING HIMSELF, WHICH IS APPARENTLY NOT AN UNCOMMON OCCURRENCE.”

Though he seemed momentarily shaken, Flowey quickly regained his composure.

“Yeah, sounds about right. That old fool was great for the bigger picture, but terrible when it came to the finer details.”

“PERHAPS HE DOES HAVE A FEW... PROBLEM AREAS. STILL, IT CLEARLY COMES FROM A PLACE OF LOVE; HE NEVER FORGOT ABOUT HIS CHILDREN.”

“So what? Asriel Dreemurr is dead. He died doing something stupid, and now everyone outside of his family has forgotten that he ever existed. It’s pathetic.”

Papyrus didn’t miss the extra venom in his voice as he spoke, nor the fact that he was looking away from Papyrus the entire time.

“IS IT? PRINCE ASRIEL WAS A LOVING PERSON, AND DIED TRYING TO DO SOMETHING FOR HIS SIBLING. EVEN IF THINGS DIDN’T QUITE GO AS THEY HAD PLANNED... I THINK THAT HE DESERVES TO BE REMEMBERED. I THINK THAT THE COMMUNITY GARDEN WILL BE A-”

“Shut up.”

Papyrus braced himself as he heard the vines darting forward.

To his surprise, however, they sped directly past him, and straight into the statue. It fell to pieces immediately, leaving nothing but an unrecognisable pile of rocks.

“Asriel is gone and he’s never coming back. It’s delusional to think otherwise, so why not just get rid of any trace that he was there in the first place? It will save everyone a lot of heartache.”

“WILL IT SAVE _YOU_ ANY HEARTACHE?”

Time stood still. If Papyrus looked over to where the statue had been, he could almost guarantee that he’d see the falling droplets suspended in the air above it.

Flowey slowly turned to face him. His smile seemed anything but genuine; he was aiming to intimidate Papyrus, and it was working.

“Golly, Papyrus, now why would something stupid like that bother me in the slightest? I don’t have any idea-”

“I’M SORRY, FLOWEY, BUT THE EVIDENCE ALL ADDS UP.”

His smile faltered, but remained in place. He said nothing, simply tilting his head to the side in mock confusion.

Papyrus steeled himself, and just hoped that he hadn’t made a huge mistake.

“AT FIRST, IT WAS JUST LITTLE THINGS... THINGS LIKE YOU SAYING ‘GOLLY’ AND ‘HOWDY’, JUST LIKE ASGORE DOES.”

“Yeah, just like how Muffet and Toriel both like baking. Guess they must be related too, huh?”

Okay, okay, it was his own fault for beginning with the flimsiest evidence he had.

“I KNOW THAT’S NOT MUCH TO GO ON, BUT... WELL, THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS THAT YOU’VE BEEN BEHAVING VERY PECULIARLY AS OF LATE... IS IT NOT AN ODD COINCIDENCE THAT IT’S HAPPENING RIGHT AROUND THE TIME THAT ASRIEL AND CHARA PASSED ON?”

“Gee, Papyrus, that certainly _is_ an odd coincidence!”

Drat. He shouldn’t have left such an obvious counter available.

“THEN THERE’S THE FACT THAT YOU WERE SO INSISTENT THAT I NOT GO INTO TORIEL’S HOUSE...”

“I’m hurt, Papyrus! To think, I give you some helpful, friendly advice and you just turn it around on me like that?”

Flowey never made anything easy, but on this occasion, it was apparent that he wasn’t going to crack without something solid. Papyrus would have to break out the big guns.

“THERE WAS ALSO... WELL, WHEN I WAS IN ALPHYS’ LAB I... FOUND A FEW THINGS.”

“Oh, you heard the log entries? The log entries of a paranoid nutjob at her lowest point? I wouldn’t take anything said on those as anything more than pointless rambling.”

He hadn’t heard them, actually. He might have to give them a listen when he was passing through Hotland.

“ACTUALLY, FLOWEY... I FOUND SOME VIDEO TAPES. TAPES THAT CERTAINLY WEREN’T MADE BY ALPHYS.”

“So you’re the one that took them?!”

“N-NO! I WAS HELPING HER TO CLEAR HER LAB BEFORE MOVING THINGS UP TO THE SURFACE AND I MAY HAVE, WELL... SNEAKED A PEEK?”

Flowey’s rage subsided, giving way to disappointment.

“Wow. Left me with all of the boring stuff, but not anything I might actually be interested in looking at. Another thing to be grateful to her for...”

“WELL... THE CONTENT OF THE TAPES-”

“Asriel and Chara. I’m well aware. Why do you think that has anything to do with me?”

Papyrus had hoped that he had made a breakthrough, but it seemed that Flowey wasn’t going to give him even the tiniest of breaks.

“WELL, FOR ONE, YOU SEEM AWFULLY INTERESTED IN THEM. EVEN OUTSIDE OF THAT, THOUGH... WELL, THEY DIDN’T MAKE SENSE TO ME AT THE TIME, BUT I UNDERSTAND IT NOW.”

“Do you? Go on then, enlighten me.”

“WELL, THE ACCEPTED VERSION OF EVENTS IS THAT CHARA FELL ILL, AND THAT ASRIEL BROUGHT THEM UP TO THE SURFACE TO PUT THEM TO REST, WHERE HE WAS KILLED BY THE HUMANS.”

“Gosh, Papyrus, you’ve finally learned what most people learn as six year olds, all it took was-”

“BUT THAT’S NOT HOW IT WENT, IS IT?”

Whatever scathing remark Flowey had been about to make died before he could get it out. Papyrus took that as as much of an invitation to continue as he was going to get.

“ASRIEL TALKS ABOUT FREEING EVERYONE AND GETTING THE FLOWERS. THEN, IN ANOTHER TAPE, THEY DISCUSS A PLAN, ABOUT ‘GETTING SIX’ AND HOW THEY’D DO THAT TOGETHER.”

Although surprised by Flowey’s lack of interjection, the fact that he was still there had to mean something, right? Hopeful, Papyrus continued.

“BEFORE I LEARNED THE HISTORY, NONE OF IT MADE ANY SENSE. THEN, WHEN ASGORE EXPLAINED IT TO ME... WELL, I STARTED TO PIECE THINGS TOGETHER. PLUS, AT THE COMMUNITY GARDEN, HE WAS VERY INSISTENT THAT WE BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL WHEN DISPOSING OF THE BUTTERCUPS.”

“Papyrus, as much as I _love_ your crazy theories-”

“ONE LAST POINT, FLOWEY, I PROMISE.”

It was a risky move, but Papyrus knew that Flowey’s patience was at its limit. If he didn’t get through to him with this, he’d end up back at square one.

Flowey thought about it; he seemed disturbed by Papyrus’ inductions, he wanted to put the matter to an end. As such, he accepted Papyrus’ proposal.

“YOU’VE TRIED SO MANY TIMES TO CONVINCE ME THAT THE WORLD IS ‘KILL OR BE KILLED’. I NEVER UNDERSTOOD WHY YOU HELD THAT VIEW SO STAUNCHLY, ESPECIALLY SINCE THE UNDERGROUND RARELY EVER HAD ANY ACTUAL KILLINGS.”

The fact that Flowey wasn’t denying any of it told Papyrus that he was exactly right, or, at least, was on the right track.

“BUT... WITH THIS, IT MAKES SENSE. YOU INTENDED TO KILL SIX HUMANS TO STEAL THEIR SOULS, BUT YOU DIDN’T, AND YOU WERE KILLED. BUT IF YOU HAD KILLED THEM, YOU BELIEVE THAT YOU’D STILL BE ALIVE TODAY- WELL, ALIVE AS ASRIEL, NOT AS FLOWEY.”

“Stop.”

Papyrus looked down at Flowey, who was looking up at him. On his face was... a tired smile?

“Guess I should have given you more credit, huh? You can be really smart when you want to be.”

He looked back at the rubble, as if trying to avoid Papyrus’ expression.

“No point in denying it, then. Pretty much everything you said was on point; Chara and I planned to get six more souls to break the barrier. When the time came to actually kill anyone, I wimped out, and that ruined everything. Like I said, I was an idiot, and if I had just gone through with the plan, things would have been a lot easier for everyone.”

He looked utterly defeated as he finished.

“Kill or be killed. I got us both killed in the end. Trust me, Papyrus, I deserve my lot in life.”

“BECAUSE YOU TRIED TO DO THE RIGHT THING AND FAILED?”

“Even if you ignore how badly everything was screwed up by my failure, which I absolutely know you _would_ , I’ve... I’ve done a lot of bad things since then, and you don’t know about most of them. You’re not GONNA know, either, before you ask.”

“BUT... YOU’RE TRYING TO DO THE RIGHT THING. YOU’VE TOLD ME THAT YOU’RE INCAPABLE OF DOING THE RIGHT THING, BUT... HERE YOU ARE. YOU COULD LEAVE WHENEVER YOU WANTED TO, YOU COULD DO PLENTY OF BAD THINGS, BUT YOU’VE EXILED YOURSELF HERE. ARE YOU TELLING ME THAT YOU HAVE NO GOOD INTENTIONS AT ALL?”

Flowey gave him a look of disappointment.

“You know that I’m up to something here, Papyrus. Maybe I’m planning something that will get everyone killed? Don’t be so quick to assume that I don’t have ulterior motives for staying here. Guess none of what I said to you at Frisk’s party sunk in, huh?”

“I KNOW THAT YOU’RE UP TO SOMETHING, BUT... SOMETHING TELLS ME THAT YOU’RE NOT TRYING ANYTHING MALICIOUS. I’VE BEEN RIGHT SO FAR, HAVEN’T I? AND, AS FOR THE PARTY... WHAT YOU SAID WAS EXTREMELY HELPFUL. SINCE THEN, A LOT HAS CHANGED.”

Flowey looked Papyrus straight in the eyes one last time. Once it became clear that he wasn’t going to budge on his stance, Flowey shook his head before sinking into the ground.

Papyrus considered calling after him, but knew that there was no point; they’d definitely see each other again in Hotland.

He continued on his journey through Waterfall, noting that the vandalism was much worse here than in Snowdin. From a small village being covered in rotten eggs to a house being covered in... rotten glamburgers, it seemed? For whatever reason, Flowey had gone particularly hard on Waterfall... or... maybe he had simply gone easy on Snowdin?

He came across a room that had once been filled with echo flowers. Many of them had been chopped down or flattened, but one stood tall. Flowey wasn’t the type to forget any important details, so Papyrus figured that this one had to have been left up for a reason.

It was only natural that he’d take a quick listen.

_“Where oh where could that child be? I’ve been looking all over for them...”_

_“Hee hee hee. THAT’S not true. She’ll find another kid, and instantly forget about you. You’ll NEVER see her again.”_

Those voices were unmistakable. The thought was horrifying enough in itself, but following the conversation they’d just had...

Flowey... really was alone, wasn’t he? And he believed that he deserved it.

Papyrus wouldn’t let that stand.

As he made his way to Hotland, he felt a surge of determination rushing through him. He knew that expecting any major changes out of Flowey in a single day was ludicrous, but... something had to change.

And if Flowey couldn’t bring about that change on his own, Papyrus was more than willing to help him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I'm not happy with a chapter and it ends up getting extended to the point that it gets split. This one in particular was pretty difficult to nail down; I had to rewrite the whole thing because it just wasn't sitting right with me. We got there in the end, though!
> 
> As for the big reveal... that one was in the cards for a while! Even during the arc with Undyne, I had it in the back of my mind that Papyrus was going to have figured it out. Obviously, plans changed and the fic has grown a lot since then, which has only given me plenty of time to sow the seeds (heh) to make it believable in the story! There are still plenty of missing details on Papyrus' end, but he knew enough to be pretty confident in his assertion.
> 
> As for Flowey... if writing him in general is difficult, how about writing his reaction to Papyrus figuring out his best kept secret? I originally considered him blowing up and bolting, but in all honesty, it felt more natural for him to just say 'yeah ya got me'. I'll expand on it next chapter, so I can't justify it much here, but I do think it fits with his general reasoning in this fic.
> 
> Also, for the record, I don't think Papyrus actually knows who Muffet is. But he wasn't going to interrupt the serious moment to be like "Wait who?" because he understood what Flowey was trying to say.
> 
> Also also, I know that the docks don't take any damage in-game (for obvious reasons) but really, there's no way that Undyne was fighting so hard without causing some damage. I figured that a little artistic liberty there was justified. Plus, I feel like it's important to put things into perspective for other characters what actually happened; everyone knows that Undyne was fighting to kill, but seeing a place utterly ravaged in her attempts to do so might get people thinking about how terrifying the experience would have been for Frisk. I know it seems like I've been given a lot more flak to Undyne than most others in that regard, but that mainly comes down to the fact that she's just more relevant to the story than most others, so she gets brought up more than them.
> 
> See you next time, everyone!


	31. Perseverance with Progress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus' patrol continues through Hotland!
> 
> He just needs to make a quick detour at the lab first...

To Papyrus’ left, he could see the giant, once brightly lit sign welcoming him to Hotland. He knew that he was in the final stretch of his journey; he didn’t have much to back it up, but he was pretty sure that everything would come to an end in the CORE, one way or another.

Still, he had a long way to go until he reached the CORE; before then, he’d definitely have to stop at Alphys’ lab. Outside of a water cooler having been knocked over, there was nothing amiss on the way there.

The lab itself was pretty much empty; they had cleared just about everything out on the move up to the surface. The hole in the wall left by Mettaton’s grand entrance was still there; not that anyone was too enthused about fixing it, seeing as the lab wouldn’t be used following the move to the surface, but Mettaton himself had insisted that it was ‘OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE THAT IT BE LEFT THERE FOR POSTERITY’.

As such, the only place worth searching was Alphys’ true lab. He made his way into the bathroom and headed down, wishing that he had thought to bring a torch with him. Thankfully, everything in the lab was still powered on; even if there were no lights, the dim glow of the screens around him gave him something to work with, at least.

It didn’t take long for him to find the monitor with that read ‘Entry Number 1’:

“This is it... Time to do what the king has asked me to do. I will create the power to free us all. I will unleash the power of the SOUL.”

Papyrus, of course, believed that every piece of a puzzle was relevant and important. Considering Flowey's dismissal of these entries, there was a good chance that he'd learn _something_ if he read them. And, of course, he knew how much effort Alphys put into her work and how it was presented. He could never fault her for that.

Still... he would have to agree with Flowey; the first few entries were somewhat boring. Really, the first six entries were all scientific explanations and whatnot. Again, not that he had any issue with that, but... well, he had all the time in the world to look into these things. He had more pressing issues to attend to!

Still, careful to leave no stone unturned, he still went ahead and checked ‘Entry Number 7’:

“We’ll need a vessel to wield the monster SOULs when the time comes. After all, a monster cannot absorb the SOULs of other monsters. Just as a human cannot absorb a human SOUL... So then... What about something that’s neither human nor monster?”

...Wait, what? Neither human nor monster? Papyrus only knew of one creature that remotely fit that description. So, either Alphys had given up on the idea, this being was simply someone that she hadn’t introduced him to yet, or...

Well, there was only one way to find out. He found himself hurrying to ‘Entry Number 8’:

“I’ve chosen a candidate. I haven’t told ASGORE yet, because I want to surprise him with it... In the center of his garden, there’s something special. The first golden flower, that grew before all the others. The flower from the outside world. It appeared just before the queen left. I wonder... What happens when something without a SOUL gains the will to live?”

...WHAT? So, Papyrus knew that Alphys had done some rather questionable things as the royal scientist before effectively exiling herself, but... this was news. The Amalgamates were public knowledge at this point; Alphys had made a public confession, explaining her experiments with determination, how she had attempted to restore the monsters that had fallen down and how they had... well, melted together.

Obviously, the announcement was, to put things lightly, controversial. While the families of the monsters involved had been, for the most part, understanding and forgiving, some had been... less so. Some had called for her arrest (which proved unsuccessful as, since the families had consented to the fallen monsters being used, and the experiments had been approved by Asgore, she hadn't actually broken any laws), and when that didn’t work, some had sought their own forms of revenge.

Of course, she hadn’t been alone; Undyne had sworn to keep her safe, and to ward off anyone that tried to hurt her. Undyne almost ended up in poor health, sacrificing a great amount of sleep to keep an eye on Alphys during the night. During the times that Undyne couldn’t be there (Or was on the verge of passing out from exhaustion), Alphys had stayed with either Asgore or Papyrus, the only other people that Undyne had trusted to keep her safe. Of course, given the circumstances, she hadn’t been very talkative; her time was spent either sleeping, trying to distract herself with scientific work or working herself into a panic over what had happened. Papyrus' primary concern was the wellbeing of his friend; bringing up the experiments in any capacity would only have agitated her, and he wouldn't really have understood the specifics anyway.

As such, he didn’t learn too much about any of the experiments from her, personally, and what little he had learned was rather incomprehensible. At one point, she had gone on a tangent about how Frisk was going to 'tell everyone' and 'explain how it happened'. When he asked them about it later on, they explained that they had read through Alphys' log entries, which detailed her experiments in the true lab, though, for her sake, they wouldn't give any further details. All that had signified to Papyrus was that the log entries were about how the Amalgamates were created; he never really thought that they would involve anything else. Especially not the origins of one of his closest friends.

He almost wondered if he even _should_ be reading the entries. He knew that Flowey could be very secretive, and did _not_ like it when people uncovered those secrets without his permission. In a way, it almost felt like an invasion of his privacy; even if Alphys had more-or-less given him permission to read them, and even Flowey hadn't really objected, it felt wrong for someone's entire history (well, his entire history as Flowey) to be laid bare in such a detached manner. Still, he couldn’t help but feel that the line of personal privacy had been crossed long before this point; if he understood where Flowey had come from, he might stand a better chance at helping him with what was troubling him now.

He kept going; ‘Entry Number 9’ had only pertained to the Amalgamates, so he continued on to ‘Entry Number 10’:

“experiments on the vessel are a failure. it doesn’t seem to be any different from the control cases. whatever. they’re a hassle to work with anyway. the seeds just stick to you and won’t let go.”

Control cases? She meant the monsters that had fallen down, right? He... really didn’t want to think that there were any other beings without a soul... not to mention the confusion that that would cause. He decided that the best course of action would be to ask later, lest he get too distracted on something that may or may not actually be relevant.

Outside of a sad insight to Mettaton and Alphys’ relationship, ‘Entry Number 11’ hadn’t been relevant. There was no point in dwelling on that for the moment, so he moved on to ‘Entry Number 12’.

“nothing is happening. i don’t know what to do. i’ll just keep injecting everything with “determination.” i want this to work.”

So, Flowey had been injected with an extremely high amount of determination: enough to melt the average monster, at the very least. Papyrus couldn't claim to fully understand what the significance of the numbers was, as his knowledge of science around the soul was somewhat lacking. Still, if monsters had ended up melting from that amount of determination, he had to imagine that there were some _serious_ adverse side effects on Flowey.

He moved on, hearing a surprising amount of hope in the next few entries, which reached a crescendo in ‘Entry Number 15’:

“Seems like this research was a dead end... But at least we got a happy ending out of it...? I sent the SOULs back to ASGORE, returned the vessel to his garden... And I called all of the families and told them everyone’s alive. I’ll send everyone back tomorrow. :)”

He felt another surge of pity for Alphys; if the trauma that she had suffered following the creation of the Amalgamates wasn't bad enough, it was preceded by such a bright, hopeful spot. He could only begin to imagine the effect that the incident would have had on her at the time.

Trying not to get too distracted, he returned his focus to what was relevant; so, Flowey had yet to ‘come to be’ at this point. Even after the fallen monsters had been revived, he was still no more than an ordinary flower when Alphys had returned him to the garden.

The next entry, of course, only signified that things had gone poorly. Try as he might, he couldn’t find a seventeenth entry, no matter how hard he searched. He would just have to assume that it had either been corrupted or gone missing; he’d have to ask Alphys if he got the chance. Figuring there was nothing more to be done, he moved on to ‘Entry Number 18’:

“the flower’s gone.”

...That _really_ left him wondering if there was anything of significance in the previous entry. It wasn't something that he had any way of checking, so he moved ahead, just in case. As he had suspected, however, that was the last entry pertaining to Flowey.

So... in her experiments, Alphys had injected a flower from Asgore’s garden with determination. This flower eventually came to life without a soul: that was when Flowey was 'born'. And, somehow, Flowey was also Asriel...? Wasn’t he killed on the surface? How could they be the same person?

Well, there was no real point in speculating; it wasn’t as though he could figure it out that way. Satisfied that he’d found everything that there was to find in the lab, he returned to the entrance, before making his way outside again so he could patrol the rest of Hotland.

He _really_ wasn’t looking forward to this. Again, he hated to criticize Alphys’ work (and certainly would never do so in her presence), but... lasers on conveyors...

There was nothing he could do but grit his teeth and get it done, he supposed. Of course, that wasn’t factoring in any alterations to the puzzles.

The steam vents were the first. He stood, waiting to be shot across to the next tile, but nothing happened. Before the dread could set in, a powerful blast of steam launched him into the air, much higher than the puzzle was intended to take anyone. Surprisingly, he still landed on the correct tile, it just came with a heaping dose of pain.

After being slammed into the ground several times, along with the conveyor belts having been altered to be _even worse_ (The conveyor belt and lasers both moved much more quickly, and the conveyor belt would swap directions randomly), he felt himself making some progress. It was then that he came across the set of “Cooking with a Killer Robot”. Not only was it one of his favourite shows under the MTT brand, but he had yet to find a cooking show to match it on the surface.

"OKAY, PAPYRUS, STAY FOCUSED. YOU HAVE A MISSION: YOU HAVE TO FINISH YOUR PATROL, AND YOU HAVE TO HELP FLOWEY. IT'S JUST A TV SET; YOU CAN'T LET YOURSELF BE DISTRACTED BY SUCH FRIVOLITIES."

...Still, a few quick selfies wouldn’t hurt. And a quick peek around the set couldn’t do any harm, right?

Once Papyrus had finished his important investigation around the set, he made his way forward. He stopped to take in the view of the CORE for a second, before realizing that he’d probably be in there soon enough anyway. He headed into an elevator, bringing him up to the next floor.

It only took a few minutes for him to be hit with a foul stench; there stood sans’ sentry station and... hot dogs littering the floor? Well, that wouldn’t do!

Papyrus, even if he wasn’t too fond of them, gathered the hot dogs and placed them, one by one, in a neat stack beside the sentry station. Once the thirtieth hot dog had been placed, he moved forward, not allowing himself to wonder why there were so many hot dogs here of all places.

Outside of an empty room advertising an art club, there was nothing between him and another set of conveyor belt puzzles. It was very rare that Papyrus would be unenthusiastic about a puzzle, let alone actively wanting to avoid one, but... Well, maybe it was better to accept that, even if he loved puzzles, he didn’t have to like _all_ of them.

Once he had finished, he came across a room filled with random objects. He recalled the MTT News report: how everything in the room was a bomb, and that Frisk had had to defuse them. Papyrus figured that the best course of action was to keep moving. True, it had been a ruse, but he didn’t want to take any risks; he wouldn't put it past Mettaton to have used actual bombs for the show. It certainly wouldn't have been the first time.

He quickly navigated his way through the room, trying not to enter the general vicinity of any of the supposed bombs, no matter how enticing the script of "Mettaton the Movie XXVIII" was. Thankfully, he reached the other end of the room with no explosions, and followed another elevator up to the third floor.

Nothing seemed too out of the ordinary until he encountered a room that was near impassable due to the sheer amount of spider webs within. Taking longer than he was proud to admit, he made his way through, cobwebs clinging to his battle body.

Not one to let himself get bogged down by such trivial concerns (Even if said trivial concerns involved the _second_ assault on his beloved outfit that day), he marched onward. He came to a halt upon reaching another familiar set; many a musical had been filmed on that set. Papyrus, of course, had seen each one, and knew the words to most of the songs that had been performed there.

He stopped once more, investigating the set and documenting his highly important investigation with some photographs, before heading down a trap door. He could have gone around, as the electric fences had been disabled, but it was important that he investigate everywhere. right? He couldn't deny that there was a significant part of him that had always wanted to fall down a trap door, especially one on a movie set, but that didn't factor into his decision to go that way. Not in the slightest.

Once he had landed, he found himself face to face with the ORIGINAL coloured tile puzzle! Sadly, however, it seemed to be inactive, as all of the tiles were grey. He supposed he'd have to solve it another day...

Well, that was his initial thought process, at least; the moment he took a step forward, the tiles lit up. He shouldn't be wasting any time, but... well, he couldn't exactly go back through the trap door, could he? The fact that it had been a long-standing ambition of his to solve this puzzle was completely irrelevant.

Admittedly, seeing it in action, it was a rather daunting puzzle; it was much longer than the copy that Alphys had prepared in Snowdin. As far as he remembered, the rules were reasonable...

“OKAY... SO, THE RED TILES ARE IMPASSABLE, THE YELLOW TILES ARE ELECTRIC, THE BLUE TILES MAKE YOU FIGHT A MONSTER... WAIT, NO, THAT’S THE GREEN ONES... THE BROWN ONES... NO, THERE ARE NO BROWN ONES AT ALL... THE PLAID ONES...”

Oh. He had forgotten the rules. Well, no matter: he had written them down, just in case such an occasion would ever arise! Proud of his exceptional foresight, he confidently reached into his pocket...

...To find a lump of mush where the paper should have been. It seemed that his exceptional foresight had not accounted for the consequences of wading through murky water. That could be a problem.

He stopped to focus himself for a minute; he had been dealing with terrible puzzles since he entered Hotland! Now that he had the opportunity to solve a good one, one of the best even, was he really going to let himself be defeated because he couldn’t remember the rules? Did he _need_ to have them written down? Of course not! He was the Great Papyrus, after all!

He stopped and took a deep breath. He took some time to look over to the coloured tile puzzle, taking in the different colours: pink, green, red, yellow, orange, purple and blue.

It was all flooding back to him; the rules weren’t that complicated once you took a minute to familiarize yourself with them! Confidence restored, he felt more than ready to take on the sadistic coloured tile maze.

He took another few steps forward, until he was at the edge of the conveyor belt; once the puzzle had been generated, he darted forward, flames billowing out to form a wall of fire behind him.

Although the puzzle seemed complex, Papyrus manoeuvred his way through with ease. He deftly tore his way around the course, not faltering once. He did crash into the electric tiles a few times (And he couldn't help but think that the voltage had been turned up), but only to get past some purple tiles that could not have been passed otherwise. Papyrus didn't even need to look up at the screens: he knew that he was making good time, and he was able to keep track of his flavour without missing a beat. As he passed over the final few tiles, the flames were quelled and he looked up to see that he had solved the puzzle with a good seven seconds to spare.

As he made his way back up, Papyrus couldn't help but feel just the tiniest bit smug. He wouldn't pretend that that was his first time solving a coloured tile puzzle; he had practiced with the one in Snowdin many times, getting it down to a fine art. Still, this puzzle was longer, and had a more strict time limit; there was nothing wrong with feeling some pride in himself for such a victory!

Even if Hotland wasn't his favourite place to be, he couldn't deny that he was in higher spirits as he made his way to the MTT Resort!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hooray! Papyrus gets a clear win, no strings attached! Hey, he deserved at least one, right?
> 
> This chapter is certainly a little odd in its presentation; so, the Lab is first, and obviously it's pretty grim. Next, we have Hotland; Papyrus is known to have a distaste for it, so it's just gonna be "ugh, this place sucks". Then there's the Mettaton sets, which Papyrus is obviously going to love. So, the end result involves a lot of hopping from one emotion to another.  
> There wasn't much to say about Frisk's journey in this one (As Papyrus would only really know about the Mettaton bits, and he doesn't know Mettaton well enough to comment on it too much. Plus, since Mettaton isn't appearing, I didn't want to do too much Metta-bashing; Undyne got to show her side of things, which made it more reasonable on her end.
> 
> I should probably mention that Papyrus wasn't being dismissive of the Amalgamates or Alphys' struggles; it was mainly just that I didn't want to go through 20 log entries and have him comment on each one, when the reason he was reading them in the first place was to learn more about Flowey.
> 
> Speaking of Flowey... he's a little busy at the minute. He'll show up next chapter.
> 
> I know Mettaton's quote there probably should have been in the Determination font, but... eh, the log entries already were. If he was a major character (Or, you know, appeared at all in this fic) I'd probably think more about it.
> 
> See y'all next time!


	32. The Flowery Finale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's finally time for Papyrus to find out what Flowey has been up to, and what he's doing with the CORE.
> 
> The end of Papyrus' journey is in sight.

It felt somewhat odd to be going into the MTT Resort, if Papyrus was totally honest. It wasn’t as though he had never been there before; on more than one occasion, Undyne had asked him to escort Snowdrake home after he had sneaked out to watch some of the comedy routines.

Still, it was rare that he’d ever be there for more than a couple of minutes. Even outside of the fact that it was deep into Hotland, or the fact that everything in there was absurdly expensive, or even the fact that the Mettaton statue made him uncomfortable (The water jet shooting out past the fountain itself made the main lobby look like some sort of gigantic puzzle, which made it very difficult to focus in there), it just wasn’t _his_ space.

He knew about sans’ routines there; he had received a great many compliments on his brother’s behalf. Snowdrake in particular had talked about how sans was the coolest, and how he was a comedic genius, and how he always knew the right thing to say... Papyrus couldn’t argue that last point.

Papyrus never really understood why sans had chosen not to share that part of his life with him; sure, he kept plenty of secrets because he felt they were in Papyrus’ best interests, and his time spent with Toriel in the Underground was obviously very personal... but a comedy routine? Ultimately, though, it was his own business, and if he wanted to keep it private, Papyrus wouldn’t try to force anything out of him. As such, he tended to avoid the MTT Resort outside of the occasional task of escorting someone home; it was sans’ space, and he didn’t want to intrude on that.

The sense of wonder surrounding the place didn’t last for too long; as he walked by the burger place that Bratty had mentioned, his senses were assaulted by a putrid, smoky smell, and this was before he had even opened the doors! He didn’t even want to think about how bad it was inside, or about the health of whoever was responsible for such a smell. Perhaps he hadn’t missed too much after all...

Having quickly checked the restaurant and the hotel rooms for anything out of the ordinary (And dashing around the burger joint, wrapping his scarf around his face as tightly as he could), he made his way back past the reception area, and found himself standing directly in front of the entrance of the CORE.

He took a moment to collect himself. Even without the warnings, he knew that the CORE was extremely dangerous; one misstep or careless move and he could find himself in very serious trouble, or worse. Still... a Royal Guard didn’t shy away because of the possibility of trouble... and neither did a friend.

Feeling ready, Papyrus stepped through the doors. The change in atmosphere was jarring; whereas the MTT Resort carried an air of sophistication, the best way that he could describe the CORE was ‘purely mechanical’ - the walls were blank, the dim lights were discomforting, and the hum of the magic flowing through the area was worse than silence.

He didn’t dally, trying not to stay longer in any room than he had to; thankfully, it seemed that the puzzles and conveyor belts had been deactivated... which seemed odd; why supply power to the CORE if not to keep the only security within active?

He took a thorough look around; no sign of anything out of the ordinary, nor any sign of Flowey. While crossing the longest bridge in the area, he stopped to think, just in case he had missed anything. Without thinking about it too much, he walked over to lean against the guard rail.

He peered over the edge to see... well, he didn’t know what he was seeing. He knew that it had a variety of different colours, but he couldn’t ascertain much else. He couldn’t even tell what state of matter it was!

What he _could_ tell, at the very least, was that he wanted to steer clear of it. He shied away from the railing, getting as close to the centre of the bridge before moving on. Before he had reached the other side, however, he heard a loud, mechanical groan and a scraping of metal.

The bridge hurtled downwards. Papyrus wobbled, clumsily flailing for a moment as the bridge continued its descent; the bridge came to an abrupt stop, which led to him being slammed down onto it. After standing up and steadying himself, he, against his better instincts, peered over the railing again.

He reeled back immediately; the bridge was barely above the colourful substance now. He didn’t spend too long looking, but he was close enough to say that it looked like some kind of cloudy foam; a small part of him may have been tempted to stick a finger in to see how it felt. Of course, taking into consideration the fact that the CORE was surrounded by boiling magma and he had no idea whether or not the substance was dangerous, he figured that it would probably be a bad idea to do so.

He turned his gaze to the end of the bridge; in front of him was a rusted door. Given how absurdly clean the rest of the CORE looked, he wondered why this place hadn’t been maintained properly. It felt as though this area was separated from the areas that Alphys would monitor; the back of the bridge didn’t connect to anything, which seemed like a serious safety hazard.

Not having much choice in the matter, Papyrus went through the door. The room inside was a sight to behold.

Monitors, screens with various readings that he couldn’t begin to understand, switches, knobs, levers, buttons... every square inch of the massive room had some piece of equipment or reading on it. Papyrus couldn’t help but wonder how anyone was expected to reach the switches that were close to the ceiling.

And, of course, planted in the centre of the room was the friend that he had been searching for. His eyes darted between each monitor; he would turn a knob slightly, before checking each one to see if it had had any effect.

“FLOWEY? WHAT’S GOING ON?”

“Like I told you. I’m up to something, trying to kill everyone you care about.”

Papyrus only offered a bemused glare as a response.

“Alright, fine, so I’m not planning on killing anybody. I just... I need to figure out how the CORE works.”

“BUT NO ONE KNOWS HOW THE CORE WORKS! EVEN ALPHYS ONLY SEEMS TO KNOW THE BARE MINIMUM!”

“Yeah, I’m well aware of what _she_ knows.”

The conversation ground to a halt with that remark; it wasn’t really an insult, so Papyrus couldn’t say much, especially with the knowledge of Flowey’s creation still fresh in his mind. Luckily for Papyrus, Flowey was quick to change the subject.

“This place... it makes no sense, right? I’ve been in the Underground for a long time, and I’ve never seen anything like it. _Nobody_ has any idea where it even came from! I know that some people can use magic to do some crazy things, but... nobody even knows what would happen if this place was used to its full potential.”

Papyrus really didn’t like Flowey’s tone; when he spoke like that, he was usually building up to something. It wasn’t often that that would be something that Papyrus would like, and he was pretty sure that he wasn’t going to like whatever followed.

“When the monsters were still trapped in the Underground, this place was off-limits; obviously, if anyone got down here, they could mess with the entire power supply of the Underground-”

“AND ENDANGER COUNTLESS LIVES.”

“Whatever. Now that everyone’s gone, I have free reign over this place. So, I’ve been... experimenting. Trying things here and there, seeing what this place can _really_ do.”

“WHAT? FLOWEY, YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT COULD HAPPEN IF YOU MAKE A MISTAKE! WHAT IF THE ENTIRE MOUNTAIN BLOWS UP?!”

He knew that such an outburst wasn’t going to help the situation, but he couldn’t help it. It wasn’t as if this behaviour was unusual; Flowey always had to know every single detail about something before he could move on from it. He’d ask several questions and, if Papyrus couldn’t answer them, he’d try to find answers, with or without Papyrus’ help.

Normally, Papyrus would humour him, but this was far too dangerous; if anything went wrong, not only was there a decent chance that Flowey could be killed, but there was no telling what the fallout would be, or how far the damage would spread.

“I’m not an _idiot_ , Papyrus. I’m well aware that there are risks involved. Still... I’m being careful. Besides, some things are worth taking risks on.”

“WHAT COULD POSSIBLY JUSTIFY- WAIT...”

“Something in mind, Papyrus?”

“...YOU’RE TRYING TO FIND A WAY TO RESTORE YOUR SOUL.”

Flowey didn’t respond instantly. He bobbed back and forth, contemplating Papyrus’ answer.

“...Sort of.”

“I... I SUPPOSE I CAN SEE WHY YOU’D BE WILLING TO RISK YOUR LIFE, THEN. BUT WHAT IF THINGS GO WRONG, AND OTHER PEOPLE GET HURT?”

“Look, Papyrus, you wouldn’t get-”

“TRY ME.”

His interruption had certainly taken Flowey by surprise. Once the initial shock had worn off, Flowey’s mouth curved upwards into a smile.

“...Even after all this time, you still find ways to surprise me. Guess that’s a big part of why I like you so much. Alright, let me ask _you_ a question: is it fair that Frisk is alive right now?”

“I... WHAT? OF COURSE IT’S FAIR!”

“Right. So... what about the kid that got made fun of because they couldn’t cook? Or the one that couldn’t handle the pressure of ballet classes? Is it fair that Frisk lived but six other kids died?”

“IT’S NOT FAIR FOR ANYONE TO DIE!”

Flowey didn’t even raise an eyebrow; it seemed as though he had prepared himself for this conversation.

“Of course not. But they did. Being the seventh child to fall, Frisk was able to get out alive; would any one of those kids have been the same if they swapped places? Not that it really matters; the six of them died... sort of.”

“S-SORT OF?”

“You’ve seen the result of a body existing without a soul; I may exist, but my consciousness is missing a lot of what you need to be ‘complete’. Ever think about what it’s like on the other end? To be a soul without a body?”

Papyrus didn’t speak; he simply shook his head, knowing that Flowey intended to continue regardless of how Papyrus responded.

“When I merged my soul with Chara’s... it was like being two people at once. Even if my thoughts were still mine, I could feel theirs, too. I could even remember their memories, so... I felt it. What it was like to be a soul without a body, even if it was only for a few seconds.”

It was rare that anything scared Flowey, but he was doing a very poor job of hiding his thoughts on the subject.

“Right now, I can barely feel emotions; they’re not gone, but they’re really limited. Being a soul is the complete opposite: there’s barely any rational thought. Almost everything is emotion, with some coherent thoughts coming in here and there. How long do you think they were in those jars, not being able to do anything but feel afraid, angry or upset?”

Well, he couldn’t deny what Flowey was saying. What had happened to the fallen children was truly awful, but...

“IT’S NOT THAT I THINK YOU’RE WRONG, BUT WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH WHY YOU’RE MESSING WITH THE CORE?”

Flowey shrugged the question off. Papyrus would just have to hope that he’d get answers by the time Flowey was finished.

“So, Papyrus... do you still think Asgore can be forgiven for what he’s done? For leaving those souls, trapped and terrified for so long, not even able to _die_... is it really fair to just turn around and absolve him of that?”

“WELL... AS HORRIBLE AS IT WAS, HE DID WHAT HE BELIEVED HE HAD TO DO, DIDN’T HE?”

“So meaning well justifies child murder?”

Oh boy. He was pulling all the stops on this one.

“NO! BUT-”

“Do you wanna know what _I_ think, Papyrus?”

Of course, without a moment’s hesitation, he continued.

“I think he was _scared_. There was nothing stopping him from letting the humans live their lives in the Underground. Sure, some of them would have happily killed Asgore to get out, but all of them? I don’t think so. He could have talked them ‘round, convinced them to stay, give up their souls when they died of old age...”

Could he have done that? Papyrus couldn’t really offer a counter point, and found himself regretting his lack of research before coming back to the Underground.

“But all it would take is one bad night. One of them decides that they want to be free again, and get him while he sleeps. That’s what he was afraid of. Kill or be killed.”

Oh for the love of...

“FLOWEY, ASGORE DIDN’T WANT TO KILL ANYONE! IF HE BELIEVED THERE WAS ANOTHER WAY, I’M SURE HE WOULD HAVE TAKEN IT!”

“Well, agree to disagree on that one, it’s not a major point anyway. The point is, basically everyone forgave him because they _assumed_ he did it for a good reason. Maybe he’s lying, maybe not... even though he _murdered six children and tried to murder a seventh_ , people forgave him because ‘he meant well’. You know how people were able to come to that conclusion?”

Papyrus didn’t answer. Even if he was supposed to (which he knew by now wasn’t the case), he didn’t want to say anything while frustrated.

“It’s because he was able to defend himself. Even though he did horrible, unforgivable things, he’s still alive. So he can explain why he did it, people can see how he felt about it. Not everyone has that luxury, Papyrus. Any ideas where I’m going with this yet?”

“ARE YOU... UM... TRYING TO GET A SOUL TO EXPLAIN WHY YOU’VE DONE WHAT YOU’VE DONE AS A FLOWER? SEEING AS YOU’RE ‘SORT OF’ NOT ALIVE?”

“Nope.”

Papyrus thought about it for a few minutes, but he was honestly stumped. He knew he had all, or at least most, of the pieces, but he couldn’t get them to fit together properly. He turned to Flowey and shook his head; he knew that Flowey hated time being wasted, and he knew that any guess he was going to make would probably be considered ‘time wasted’.

“Eh, fair enough. There are only a few other people right now who’d ‘get it’ anyway. So, let me ask you something else: what would it take for you to give up on your brother?”

“NOTHING COULD MAKE ME GIVE UP ON HIM.”

He may have spoken a touch too quickly, or maybe his tone was just a little too defensive. Even though he whole-heartedly believed what he was saying, he knew that he had just given Flowey an opening to challenge that.

“Really? So, say he... I dunno... killed a child without feeling any remorse. Would you give up on him then?”

“SANS WOULD NEVER DO THAT!”

“Wouldn’t he? Hmm... well, in any case, let’s try something different, then. Whether or not he actually would, let’s say he _did_ do something truly evil. He wasn’t sorry, and you ended up suffering for it too. Do you think you’d forgive him?”

The idea of sans doing something truly evil was laughable. In most cases, the idea of sans doing something in general wasn’t realistic. Still... if he did entertain Flowey’s ridiculous scenario...

“YES. I’D HATE MYSELF FOR IT, BUT I COULD NEVER GIVE UP ON SANS. NO MATTER WHAT.”

Flowey nodded. There was no smugness, no pride in getting Papyrus to concede; he simply accepted what Papyrus had said.

“Chara did some terrible things, Papyrus. They manipulated me, got us killed and fully intended to murder innocent people to free the monsters... and I don’t think they would have stopped at six. But they were my sibling, Papyrus; I know for sure that they loved me, and I loved them, too.”

Now the pieces were clicking together.

“So many people have forgotten who Chara was, but... what are they remembered as in the history books, Papyrus? They’re the evil human child. They’re the demon that destroyed the hope of monsterkind and set back human-monster relations by centuries. They’re the one that had a lust for blood and didn’t care about anyone.”

Papyrus wanted to reassure Flowey, but... well, he had heard about the first fallen human long before knowing that they had any relation to Asgore.

Flowey certainly wasn’t wrong about how they were depicted.

“Yeah, fine, they did some _horrible_ things. Yeah, they hurt a lot of people, me included. But even after all of the evil things Asgore did, he gets to move on. Same for Undyne, same for everyone... except us. I’m stuck as a flower forever, and Chara...”

“FLOWEY-”

“Nobody’s ever gonna know, Papyrus, because no one other than you would ever listen to me, and Chara’s not around to be listened to. But I knew Chara better than anyone: they were disturbed. Still, they weren’t _evil_. They had really warped views on what was okay, but... they really did care. They loved me, they loved mom and dad... and they really did want to break the barrier. When they committed to doing something, they’d do _anything_ to make sure it was done.”

He looked back to the devices lining the walls.

“It’s time for me to do the same. You’re the only other person who gets it, Papyrus. Are you gonna help me?”

“HELP? FLOWEY, I DON’T KNOW THE FIRST THING ABOUT ANY OF THIS! AND I STILL DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’RE TRYING TO ACHIEVE!”

“When Frisk went through the Underground... they told me that they heard someone talking to them. Guiding them. It was definitely Chara.”

“ISN’T THAT A LITTLE-”

“Trust me, Papyrus. It was definitely them.”

He wanted to offer a counter argument, to tell Flowey that he was being too hasty. Even if that wasn’t a terrible idea, he couldn’t say with certainty that Flowey was wrong.

“And... that means they’re still here, somehow.”

“FLOWEY... THEY DON’T HAVE A SOUL OR A BODY! HOW COULD THEY STILL BE HERE?”

“I don’t know! Frisk stopped hearing them when they left the Underground, right? So, obviously, Chara didn’t leave either!”

Papyrus didn’t dare bring up the other possible reason that Frisk had stopped hearing Chara.

“So, if they’re still here... I can bring them back. I can... I don’t know, make them a body or something! Sure, they won’t have a soul, but it’s a start, right?”

“FLOWEY...”

“And you’ll help, right? You’re the only person I can actually trust, Papyrus. You won’t let me down, will you?”

He was in trouble. A great deal of trouble. He knew that any denial would upset Flowey, but he couldn’t entertain something so infeasible. Especially when doing so could endanger the lives of others.

“FLOWEY, LISTEN. EVEN IF WE COULD FIND A WAY TO RESTORE CHARA’S LIFE... USING THE CORE ISN’T THE WAY TO GO ABOUT THIS. MAYBE WE COULD MEET WITH FRISK AND ALPHYS, AND THEY COULD-”

He didn’t get to finish. Once more, he found himself being constricted by thick, thorny vines.

“ _Seriously_ , Papyrus? After everything, even after you heard those log entries, you think I’m stupid enough to trust _her_? You’re the only person who can help me with this!”

“B-BUT FLOWEY, I DON’T KNOW THE FIRST THING ABOUT HOW THE CORE WORKS!”

“Yeah, and _she_ didn’t know the first thing about determination! But since she _tried her best_ , everyone turned around and forgave her! If this works, we’ll have Chara back, and people can forgive them-”

“AND IF IT DOESN’T WORK, PEOPLE COULD DIE, OR WORSE!”

He felt the vines tighten. He felt a sharp pain before they loosened up.

“Why do you think I care?! I’m _tired_ , Papyrus! If I die, then everything goes away! I’ve got nothing more to worry about! If anyone else suffers, so be it!”

“FLOWEY, THAT’S A HORRIBLE WAY TO THINK!”

As soon as he had said that, Flowey pulled him down, and was staring him dead in the eyes.

“Say Toriel never showed up. Say Frisk fought Asgore. Do you _really_ think that he would have lost a fight to a child with a stick?”

“I-”

“He wasn’t planning on just slaughtering Frisk. He was going to make it an even fight, and if he lost... he was going to let himself die. Why is it okay for him, but not for me?”

“IT’S NOT OKAY FOR HIM EITHER!”

Flowey wasn’t listening. He stopped for a split second.

“You’re really not going to help me, then? Fine. I’ve been alone for long enough now, I can do this by myself!”

More vines flew out, pushing buttons, pulling levers... he was barely even looking at the monitors any more.

“What’s the worst that could happen, Papyrus? People dying? The world ending?! I’VE SEEN IT ALL ALREADY! IF THIS CAN BRING CHARA BACK, I SAY BRING IT ON!”

Papyrus was, to say the least, utterly terrified. Sure enough, within minutes, alarms were blaring and warning lights were flashing.

“FLOWEY, STOP!”

“Why should I?!”

“B-BECAUSE... BECAUSE I’M SCARED, AND YOU’RE HURTING ME!”

If nothing else, Flowey was surprised. It wasn’t long before he had regained his composure.

“So? I’ve never been afraid of hurting or scaring people before!”

“YOU’RE MY FRIEND, FLOWEY! _WE’RE_ FRIENDS! DO YOU REALLY WANT ME TO DIE ON THE OFF-CHANCE THAT THIS WORKS?!”

“Of course I don’t _want_ you to die! I just...”

“PLEASE, FLOWEY! YOU KNOW AS WELL AS I DO THAT THIS ISN’T GOING TO WORK! IF YOU REALLY BELIEVED THAT THIS COULD WORK, YOU WOULD HAVE DONE IT BY NOW!”

Flowey didn’t respond. Papyrus wanted to let him process things, but they were getting dangerously close to the point of no return.

“FLOWEY, I COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND WHAT IT FEELS LIKE- EVERYTHING YOU’VE GONE THROUGH. BUT THIS... THIS IS WRONG! YOU’RE ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS, BUT I CAN’T JUST SIT HERE WHILE YOU PUT LIVES IN DANGER!”

He struggled harder against the vines, giving it everything he had – but to no avail.

Within seconds, however, Flowey returned to every pressed button, every flicked switch, every pulled lever – and returned them to their initial state. The alarms stopped, and the lights followed soon after. The vines released Papyrus, before slinking back down into the ground.

“You wanna know something I _hate_ about you, Papyrus? I wish I could do what you do.”

His head was turned towards the ground, his petals drooping.

“I never wanted to go with Chara – the day we died. I didn’t want to kill anyone. But I couldn’t tell them that. I couldn’t admit to them that I was afraid of things going wrong, and... well, they went wrong. I got us killed by, as usual, being a crybaby.”

He turned to face Papyrus. Tears were forming in his eyes, though he seemed to be doing his best to suppress them.

“And yet, here I am, doing the exact same thing. Putting lives in danger for something that _might_ work. And there you are in my position, and you say ‘no’. Wonder how things would have gone if Chara had a brother like you?”

“I MAY BE FANTASTIC, BUT _YOU_ WERE CHARA’S BROTHER. NO ONE, NOT EVEN THE GREAT PAPYRUS, COULD STAND AS A REPLACEMENT.”

“Spare me, Papyrus. When I was Asriel, I was a snivelling crybaby. As Flowey, the only good thing I’ve ever done is leave people alone. Even if I could bring Chara back... they’d be better off without me.”

“WELL, I CAN DEFINITIVELY SAY THAT THAT’S NOT TRUE!”

Flowey looked at him with the most blatant disgusted expression he could muster. Papyrus decided not to comment on the effort Flowey was putting in to stop that expression from becoming a smile.

“You’re gonna go on one of your ‘This is why you’re important to me and why I still believe in you’ rants, aren’t you?”

“YES!”

“...If I threaten you will you shut up?”

“NOPE!”

Flowey sighed, while Papyrus plopped himself down beside him.

“YOU’VE HELPED ME A GREAT DEAL, YOU KNOW.”

“Fine, I’ll bite. How?”

“DO YOU REMEMBER THE CONVERSATION WE HAD AT FRISK’S BIRTHDAY PARTY?”

“Yeah? What about it?”

“WELL, AFTER THAT, I HAD AN ARGUMENT WITH UNDYNE.”

Flowey didn’t look impressed.

“Glad I could help you with that, Papyrus.”

“HOLD ON, I’M NOT FINISHED! ANYWAYS, AFTER OUR ARGUMENT, I TALKED WITH HER... AND SANS... AND I DID A LOT OF THINKING. AND THE TRUTH IS... YOU WERE RIGHT.”

“Huh?”

“NOT COMPLETELY, OF COURSE; THE IMPORTANT PEOPLE IN MY LIFE ARE STILL THERE FOR ME, AND THEY DO CARE. BUT... THEY WEREN’T BEING HONEST WITH ME. THEY WERE HIDING THINGS THAT THEY DIDN’T THINK I COULD HANDLE, AND THEY WEREN’T REALLY TREATING ME WITH A FAIR AMOUNT OF RESPECT.”

“No kidding.”

“STILL... I TALKED TO THEM. I ADMITTED TO SANS THAT HE HIDES TOO MUCH FROM ME, AND I ADMITTED TO UNDYNE THAT SHE HASN’T SHOWN ENOUGH RESPECT FOR ME.”

Flowey raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t often that Papyrus ever asserted himself, especially when Undyne was involved, so Papyrus could only assume that the flower was impressed.

“So, how’d that work out?”

“SANS TOLD ME THAT HE’D BE MORE HONEST WITH ME. HE STILL KEEPS PLENTY TO HIMSELF, BUT... WELL, HE’S NOT BRUSHING ME OFF WHEN A PROBLEM COMES UP, WHICH IS A SOLID START.”

“And Undyne?”

“SHE... DESTROYED MY CAR. WE HAD A FIGHT ABOUT IT AND STOPPED TALKING FOR A WHILE. IN THE END, I REACHED OUT, AND WE TALKED ABOUT... EVERYTHING. MAINLY ABOUT HOW SHE HADN’T BEEN RESPECTING MY BOUNDARIES AND HER LYING ABOUT WHY I WASN’T ALLOWED INTO THE ROYAL GUARD.”

Flowey cracked a smile at the mention of the Royal Guard.

“Guessing that went well?”

“OUR FRIENDSHIP BECAME STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE! SHE’S BEING MORE CONSIDERATE OF MY NEEDS, I’M BEING MORE OPEN AND HONEST WITH HER... AND YES, IN THE END, SHE CAME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT I WAS A GOOD FIT FOR THE ROYAL GUARD!”

“Heh. Can’t say she’s wrong.”

“OF COURSE YOU CAN’T! PLUS, EVER SINCE THEN, I’VE BEEN HANGING OUT WITH THE CANINE UNIT AND HAVE BEEN JOINING THEIR POKER NIGHTS!”

Flowey was smiling, but the sadness behind it wasn’t very well hidden.

“AND I WOULDN’T HAVE ANY OF THAT IF YOU WEREN’T THERE FOR ME. IF YOU WEREN’T HONEST WITH ME, I WOULDN’T HAVE HAD IT IN ME TO STAND UP FOR MYSELF.”

“It’s what Chara would have said to me. I’m just glad that one of us – _eventually_ – was smart enough to listen.”

“YOU REALLY LOVED THEM, DIDN’T YOU?”

“Of course I did! They were always there for me, no matter what. Plus, I was everyone’s ‘symbol of hope’. Chara would say that I was too much of a crybaby and, honestly? It felt pretty good to have someone admit that I was actually fallible, even if they were a little harsh about it.”

Papyrus smirked as he listened to Flowey’s explanation.

“HMM... I DARESAY THAT SOUNDS FAMILIAR.”

“What?”

“YOU DO THE EXACT SAME FOR ME!”

His mouth was agape for a moment. Papyrus was worried that he had offended his friend, but Flowey’s smile returned, looking just a little bit more genuine this time.

“Yeah, I guess we do have a similar dynamic, huh? It’s almost like...”

He stopped. They both knew exactly what he was going to say.

“Nah. Little late for me to be making happy families, huh?”

“I... I KNOW THAT YOU AND SANS DON’T ALWAYS GET ALONG TOO WELL, BUT THERE’S ALWAYS A PLACE FOR YOU – IN MY HOME AND IN MY FAMILY.”

“There isn’t, though. Honestly, Papyrus, I really do appreciate that you’ve stuck with me after everything, but... I don’t deserve it. Maybe at some point, things can change; I can earn a redemption somehow. But for now... I’m better off down here.”

“BUT... YOU WERE RIGHT EARLIER! WE’VE ALL DONE HORRIBLE THINGS! WHY SHOULD YOU BE THE ONLY ONE THAT DOESN’T GET A CHANCE TO REDEEM YOURSELF?”

Flowey shook his head.

“I just blew it again, Papyrus. Do you really think that no one has taken any notice of what just happened?”

That hadn’t occurred to him. If Alphys was able to tell him about minute changes being made to the CORE’s functions... that definitely wouldn’t have slipped her radar. Not to mention, Undyne was probably on high alert already.

“Defend me all you want, Papyrus, but this has definitely set back any goodwill anyone may have built up for me. The truth is, without a soul, I don’t have any chance up there.”

“THEN... WE’LL JUST HAVE TO TRY TO FIND ANOTHER WAY TO RESTORE YOURS!”

“I’m not gonna get my hopes up. Still... you have a knack for getting things done. Keep me updated on that front?”

“OF COURSE! AS SOON AS I GET HOME, I’LL START BRAINSTORMING, AND SEE IF SANS OR ALPHYS CAN HELP ME!”

Flowey certainly didn’t seem as confident as Papyrus was, but he wasn’t shutting the idea down, either.

“Look, if you’re really going to do that... keep Chara out of it, okay? I don’t even know if it’s possible to bring them back, but... well, convincing your friends to help me would be enough of a start, right? If it works, we can try to help Chara.”

There was obviously more to Flowey’s reasoning than he let on, but Papyrus figured that there was no point in pressing him.

“OF COURSE, YOU HAVE MY WORD!”

“So... I guess you’d better get going before Undyne turns me into mulch, huh?”

“THAT... I’D LIKE TO SPEND MORE TIME WITH YOU, BUT THAT IS A DANGEROUSLY LIKELY OUTCOME.”

“I’ll send the bridge back up to the top of the CORE, you can make your way out through New Home. Are you, uh... you’re still visiting on the day we planned, right?”

As good as Flowey was at being intimidating, he really couldn’t hide it when he was worried.

“OF COURSE! THE GREAT PAPYRUS NEVER MISSES A PLANNED EVENT UNLESS THE CIRCUMSTANCES ARE PARTICULARLY URGENT!”

“Right. Of course not. Mind if I see you out?”

“NOT AT ALL!”

He headed over to the bridge, before being returned to the top of the CORE, as promised. He went as quickly as he could through New Home, almost having forgotten that he was supposed to be patrolling the area.

As he did so, he couldn’t help but feel a little upset. He was glad to have solved the problems with the CORE, but... he hadn’t really changed much with Flowey. Still, they were going to be having one last conversation before he left. He didn’t think he was going to convince him to leave the Underground, and there didn’t seem to be much else that would actually help him.

He reached the throne room, and came across one flower sitting just in front of the others. It was smiling; the smile was sincere, welcoming Papyrus into the final room of his journey.

“Howdy, Papyrus. Guess this is goodbye for now, huh?”

“IS THERE ANY WAY I COULD CONVINCE YOU TO COME WITH ME? YOU’RE MY FRIEND, FLOWEY, AND I HATE TO THINK THAT YOU’LL BE ALONE AFTER ALL OF THAT!”

“Sorry, Papyrus. Look, maybe when you’ve come up with some sort of plan for a soul... maybe then, we can work something out. Until then, it’s better off if I stay here.”

“WHY? IF EVERYONE ELSE CAN BE FORGIVEN, WHY CAN’T YOU?”

Flowey contemplated it. He swayed back and forth, taking his time to settle on an answer that he was comfortable with.

“Even if we ignore the fact that you and Frisk are the only ones that would forgive me... I’m just not ready yet. Without a soul, it’s a lot more difficult to really be sorry, or want to change for the better. After today... well, maybe I’ll have a better answer for you the next time you visit.”

“I HOPE YOU WILL! SO... WILL YOU BE OKAY HERE BY YOURSELF?”

“As okay as I can be. I’ll fix the things I’ve messed with, and I won’t screw around with the CORE any more. Besides... I need some time to myself to process things.”

“VERY WELL. IF YOU’RE TRULY SURE, I’LL LEAVE YOU BE UNTIL MY NEXT VISIT.”

Still... he couldn’t leave it at that, could he? Of course not.

He dashed over and pulled the flower into a hug.

“STILL... I BELIEVE THAT YOU HAVE GOOD IN YOU, SOUL OR NO SOUL. YOU’VE ALWAYS BEEN A FRIEND TO ME, AND I THINK THAT YOU DESERVE A CHANCE AT HAPPINESS, JUST LIKE EVERYONE ELSE. IF I’M GOING TO LEAVE YOU WITH ANY MESSAGE BEFORE I GO... IT’S THAT YOU REALLY HAVE HELPED ME, FLOWEY. SOME DAY, HOPEFULLY SOON, I’M GOING TO DO THE SAME FOR YOU.”

He let go, and Flowey continued to do nothing but smile.

“Here’s hoping, Papyrus. Now go on, don’t you have anything better to do?”

Papyrus saluted Flowey, giving him one last goodbye before heading through the exit where the barrier had once stood.

Even after all this time, passing through there still felt surreal; to truly be free, not confined to Mt. Ebott. Of course, this time in particular was tinged with melancholy; more than ever, he wished he could bring Flowey with him.

He looked back, only to see that Flowey had disappeared. He didn’t know how long it would take, but he knew that, some day, he was going to bring Flowey through that exit with him.

He made his way down the mountain, determined to get home to discuss the idea with Alphys. To his surprise, however, there was somebody standing by his car.

“PAPYRUS!”

Immediately, he found himself being tackled and pulled into a hug. There was only one person that it could have been.

“What HAPPENED in there?! Alphie told me that the CORE was going crazy, and-”

“UNDYNE, IT’S OKAY! I SPOKE TO FLOWEY. HE PROMISED TO STOP, AND I CAN GUARANTEE ON MY HONOUR AS A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD THAT HE’S TELLING THE TRUTH.”

“Dang, that’s a hefty promise to make. If you're really willing to stake that much on it, I guess I'll just have to take your word for it! So, uh... how’d the patrol go?”

He offered her a ride home, during which he regaled her with a tale of his first patrol. He, of course, left out a great deal about Flowey, only mentioning the bare minimum about him. If Undyne had realized that he was leaving parts out, she didn’t question him.

Still, throughout the entire thing, and despite Undyne’s praises, he still wasn’t quite content. Even though there was nothing to be done for Flowey... it was still upsetting to leave him alone in the Underground. It was then that an idea dawned on him.

His priority was to have a discussion with Alphys about finding a way to build a new soul for Flowey. That, as could be expected, was a long-term project. In the meantime, though, he _did_ have one other idea that she could help him with...

Flowey had always had the time to support Papyrus in the Underground. It was time to return the favour.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're finally here! This was always intended as the 'final' chapter, though there'll be an epilogue just to wrap everything up. I'll save my major commentary for then.
> 
> I took a few liberties with the CORE; we don't get to see too much of how it actually works in-game, so I had to take some guesses. We know that it can be moved around, which I figure Alphys would have done remotely if necessary. I figure that the room that Flowey in was sort of a 'main control room', and could be used to do so manually.
> 
> One of the things brought up is the situation with the six children. So, we see the souls take control during the Photoshop Flowey fight; that's not necessarily an indicator that they're still alive, but I think it works. Then the question comes about of what it is to be a soul without a body.  
> As cheap as it is, I just settled on it being a reverse Flowey situation; Flowey can barely feel emotions, mainly only negative ones, because he lacks a soul. Everything comes down to his own reasoning and conscious thoughts. So, for the souls... I figured it would be the opposite? They barely have any conscious thought, with their existence mainly being emotion.  
> Whether or not Asgore would have known about this is up to the reader.
> 
> So, Flowey's plan is definitely a little odd. As you can probably imagine, him needing Papyrus obviously isn't about his scientific knowledge; it's more for validation. To have someone say 'This might actually work!' because he knows himself that the idea is utter nonsense. He knows that Chara passed on when Frisk left the Underground, but he's in denial about that.  
> As for his rants... not taking one side or another, but I could definitely see him making those arguments. Being completely alone in the Underground has given him plenty of time to think things over.  
> Then, of course, there's his choice to stay in the Underground again. It's sort of a rehash of the game, but... well, the epilogue will fix things up a little. He still has a lot to work through, and he knows that some characters will never forgive him; even with a soul, he has his doubts. It's a sad state of affairs, but it's the most realistic one I could see.  
> As for the idea of him getting a soul again... sadly, he doesn't buy it for a second. As far as he's concerned, it's completely hopeless. He's just entertaining Papyrus. Still... there's no doubt that he's made tremendous progress, soul or no soul.
> 
> And, of course, I just had to go there, didn't I? Chara.  
> Obviously, I can't completely avoid giving my own opinion here; for one, this fic only works when assuming that Chara is the narrator. There's also the implication that Chara had trauma in their life that led to them hating humanity. And, of course, the idea that they're not evil. You really can't bring them into a fic without picking a side, but I tried to do so without deviating from canon. I won't go too much into why I think what I think, I'll leave everything else up to the reader!
> 
> I have to say, I've always thought the dynamic between Papyrus and Flowey was similar to what I imagined the dynamic between Chara and Asriel to be.  
> I'd imagine that's a significant part of why Flowey likes Papyrus; he reminds him of what he was like when he was Asriel, and he's offering the same 'guidance' that Chara gave him. Obviously, there are clear differences, but there are similarities there, imo.  
> I like to think that they both see each other as brotherly figures, but the situation is too complicated for them to admit it. It's there, though, and it goes unsaid.
> 
> As always, thank you so much to everyone who's been supporting this fic and me! Last time in this fic I'll be saying it, but see you next time!
> 
> Also, I'll die on the hill of Snowdrake being a sans fanboy.  
> Also also, poor Burgerpants. I imagine that he was one of the last to leave, only being allowed to go once any potential customers had left.


	33. Snapshots of Solidarity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With everything that happened, Papyrus has been quite busy as of late. Following the incident in the CORE, however, things have finally settled down.
> 
> However, no story ever really ends; there's always more to see.
> 
> Here are a few choice moments in Papyrus' life, showing how his relationships have developed and how he has changed.

“CAN ANYONE BEAT A KING HIGH STRAIGHT FLUSH?”

“Nope – but I can match it.”

Papyrus and Doggo placed their cards down on the table. Both, indeed, had the same hand; the only difference between them was that Papyrus had spades whereas Doggo had clubs.

“What are the odds, eh? First time I’ve ever seen somethin’ like this happen... guess we just split the pot and go for another round?”

“WE _COULD_... OR WE COULD MAKE THINGS MORE INTERESTING.”

Dogamy and Dogaressa murmured something to each other, while Greater Dog and Lesser Dog turned to see Doggo’s reaction.

He smirked, leaning forward over the table.

“I like interesting. What do ya have in mind?”

“A VERY SIMPLE GAME: THE DECK IS SHUFFLED, AND WE EACH DRAW A CARD. THE FIRST TO GUESS THE OTHER PERSON’S CARD GETS THE WHOLE POT.”

There was an excited ‘BORF’ from Greater Dog as Doggo mulled the proposition over.

“Feels like you’re pulling a fast one on me...”

“I’M SURE THAT THE OTHERS WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO KEEP AN EYE OUT TO ENSURE THAT NO JAPERY IS AFOOT. WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO DO THAT?”

Dogamy and Dogaressa turned to each other, before giving each other a resolute nod.

“We can do that, right, dearest?”

“Of course we can, sweetheart!”

That put the ball back in Doggo’s court. He took the dog treat from his mouth, placing it on the table.

“Well then... guess I’m in.”

Lesser Dog snatched the deck and shuffled the cards with absurd speed and precision. He then held out the deck to both Doggo and Papyrus, prompting them each to take their card. Once they had done so, they took a quick peek before placing their cards face down in the middle of the table.

“So, uh... who goes first?”

“YOU’RE MORE THAN WELCOME TO START!”

“Fair enough. Uhh... Three of Clubs?”

Papyrus confidently shook his head. He then began to think himself.

“FOUR OF CLUBS?”

“C’mon, give me more credit than that!”

The game continued, with Greater Dog taking note of the cards that had already been guessed. Papyrus almost found himself getting distracted by how pretty Greater Dog’s handwriting was, though he maintained his focus.

As the list grew, tensions were rising; Dogamy and Dogaressa huddled together in anticipation, while Lesser Dog was vibrating on the spot.

“King of Spades?”

“UNFORTUNATELY NOT!”

Before Papyrus made what he expected to be his final guess, he went back over his line of logic; it was too difficult to keep up with Lesser Dog’s shuffling, so he was relying on an approximation of where the cards would have been shuffled to.

He had been running over it in his head; it seemed that Lesser Dog picked the cards up in groups of six before reshuffling them. If that was the case, then there weren’t many options left. If he had been keeping track of everything properly, the only other possible card it could be was...

“TWO OF DIAMONDS?”

There was a brief silence as every head at the table turned to look at Doggo. He returned the dog treat to his mouth, flipping the card face-up.

“Well played, pal. So, what was yours?”

“I HAD THE JACK OF SPADES!”

He flipped his own card up to reveal that he was telling the truth.

Papyrus reaped the rewards while Lesser Dog gathered the cards together. Dogamy and Dogaressa were the first to stand up.

“Well, I must say that was quite an exciting game! We’d probably best be going, we don’t want a late night, do we, dearest?”

“Not at all, sweetheart! We’ll see you all next week!”

They said their goodbyes before leaving, paw in paw. They were soon followed by Greater Dog and Lesser Dog, both of whom had made plans for the next morning.

This left Doggo and Papyrus together, the only ones still sitting in their booth at the diner.

“Say, uh... any chance I could get a ride home? I’m cool with walking, but, y’know...”

“OF COURSE! IT WOULD BE NO TROUBLE AT ALL!”

The two made their way to Papyrus’ car and began the drive back to the apartment building. None of the Canine Unit really minded the walk, but it was much easier for Doggo to get a ride home, due to his already limited vision.

“So... level with me, was there a trick involved or was that pure luck?”

“WELL... THERE WAS CERTAINLY LUCK INVOLVED, BUT I EVENTUALLY MANAGED TO USE THE PROCESS OF ELIMINATION, ALONG WITH A FEW OBSERVATIONS ON LESSER DOG’S SHUFFLING TECHNIQUE, TO FIGURE IT OUT!”

He had hoped that Doggo wouldn’t be too upset, but Doggo didn’t seem to mind at all. In fact, he was snickering as he processed what he had been told.

“Hah! I knew you were up to something. Gotta admit, you can be a real shrewd customer when you wanna be. It’s crazy how quickly you picked the game up!”

“WELL, EVER SINCE THAT NIGHT GREATER DOG PULLED THREE ROYAL FLUSHES IN A ROW... I FIGURED THAT THERE WAS MORE TO THE GAME THAN CHANCE!”

“Oh man... I _still_ have no idea how he did that. Think the big guy has a deck or two hidden in his armour?”

The two laughed at the concept, though a knowing glance between the two suggested that neither considered the idea to be _completely_ impossible.

“Ahh... Y’know, I’m glad you finally got to join in on all this. You really do know how to liven a place up!”

“WHY, THANK YOU, DOGGO! I’M HONOURED TO HAVE YOU ALL AS MY FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES!”

The concept of considering them as friends was no longer new to him, but it was still something special. Each member of the Canine Unit had accepted him readily into their group, and he appreciated each individual member as a friend.

Still, he couldn’t deny that he was slightly closer to Doggo, as the two had taken to hanging out together outside of the group on occasion, even if it was usually just the odd sparring session or a jog.

Papyrus still found himself feeling jubilant as they pulled up to the apartment building. Doggo stepped out of the car before stretching his legs and turning back to Papyrus.

“Thanks, pal! See ya next week?”

“OF COURSE!”

“Awesome. Might snoop around a bit, see if the big guy actually _is_ hiding anything, I’ll keep you updated.”

The two laughed again, although Papyrus was a touch concerned that Doggo might actually get himself into a sticky situation. He’d just have to trust that Doggo wouldn’t let the situation get out of hand.

“WELL, JUST MAKE SURE NOT TO GET YOURSELF INTO ANY TROUBLE! GOOD NIGHT, DOGGO!”

“Will do, night Papyrus!”

Papyrus waved before beginning the drive home.

He couldn’t _wait_ for the next poker night!

* * *

“S-seriously?! How can you _prefer_ the dub?!”

It was a debate that they had engaged in, time and time again. As she had explained to him, the show that they had watched together was... not exactly the original? Apparently, it was originally made in a different language, and some things had been changed in translation.

He still didn’t quite understand the reasoning, but he knew that Alphys was of the opinion that, in basically every situation, the original versions were superior; she claimed that they tended to be more complex and that crucial plot points were often lost in favour of pointless jokes or ‘inferior versions of the same story’.

Well, he understood where she was coming from; when watching them back to back, the original and the translation actually were quite different. The translation certainly took itself less seriously, he could agree with that; he also couldn’t deny that the translation _did_ cut out some character interactions that he quite liked. Still, despite that...

“IT MAY NOT BE THE MOST COMPLEX, BUT THE TRANSLATION HAS SO MUCH MORE FLAVOUR AND CHARM!”

“Y-you mean corny jokes and t-terrible voice acting?”

“HEY, I KNOW I CAUGHT YOU LAUGHING AT SOME OF THOSE JOKES! BESIDES, SOME OF THE JOKES CAN TELL YOU A LOT ABOUT THE CHARACTERS MAKING THEM!”

He definitely saw her crack a fond smile at that, she had even quoted some of the jokes in question to him once or twice. Given the look on her face following that smile, he knew that she was taking what he had said into serious consideration.

“F-fair enough... Still, a lot of the extra jokes come a-at the expense of... j-just about all of the darker elements a-and w-world building!”

“TRUE, BUT IS IT ALL _REALLY_ NECESSARY?”

“O-of COURSE it is!”

Alphys huffed. Still, he knew that she enjoyed their debates; he felt the same way, to be honest. Even though their opinions were radically different, there was no malice behind their words. In many cases, even if they hadn’t managed to outright change each other’s opinions, they _were_ able to convince each other to see things from another perspective.

“The d-darker elements give it a more realistic undertone! The ending in p-particular was made so... s-saccharine!”

“MAYBE, BUT IS THAT REALLY A PROBLEM? I LIKE THAT THE HEROES WON IN THE END, WHY DOES THERE NEED TO BE SOMETHING TO DETRACT FROM THAT?”

“I-it’s not about detracting from the heroes’ victory, it’s just... l-life isn’t always so... c-cut and dry, you know? S-sometimes you just... never really get to e-escape from some of the d-darker parts of your life...”

Even if Alphys’ views on fictional media and his own were polar opposites, she could always get him to see things in ways that he wouldn’t have considered otherwise.

Yes, he absolutely did enjoy many things, like books or movies, but _Alphys_ lived them. Things like Mew Mew Kissy Cutie weren’t just things that she liked, but were integral to her sense of self. To be honest, he didn’t think it was wholly healthy. Still...

They helped her. She’d watch these shows and see someone that she could relate to. She’d see someone who faced similar problems, and that would give her the drive to try to get through them herself. And perhaps, if he was reading the situation right, she’d see that, sometimes, you can never really let go of something bad that’s happened, but you can still live a fulfilling, happy life.

Even if he’d always prefer a show’s zany humour in favour of darker themes, he understood that it meant something to Alphys. He hadn’t always understood why she enjoyed these shows so much, and even now he couldn’t quite grasp it on any level other than conceptual, but it was important to her, and really did help her to be happy.

That was enough for him.

“WELL... I SUPPOSE THE ONLY REAL WAY TO RESOLVE THIS WOULD BE TO WATCH A FEW MORE EPISODES OF THE ORIGINAL VERSION!”

“Oh! Uh, um... w-well, if you’re okay with that...? I... don’t wanna annoy you or anything...”

“NONSENSE! I STILL ENJOY BOTH VERSIONS! AND WHO KNOWS, PERHAPS I MIGHT SEE THINGS A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY THIS TIME AROUND!”

And so, they hopped on the couch and began to watch a few episodes of the original version of the show.

It still lacked the charm of the dub... but seeing Alphys hug a cushion a little too tightly when the protagonist was blamed for the town being destroyed... followed by the main antagonist vowing that they’d always come back... only to see an errant tear or two from her as the heroes still won in the end...

Well, his opinion may not have changed, but he couldn’t deny that, as they branched out into other shows, he found himself appreciating darker themes just a little bit more.

* * *

“Attention, everybody! So, we’re here to announce the grand opening...”

“...of our town’s community garden.”

There weren’t too many people in attendance, but everyone there applauded (with the exception of Monster Kid, who cheered instead). RG01 and RG02 stepped down, prompting Asgore to say a few words.

“Howdy, everyone! Firstly, I would like to thank all of you for taking the time to come here today; with all of your support, I believe that we can truly make this garden into something special.”

He gestured towards Papyrus, Undyne, RG01 and RG02, all of whom were stood to his side.

“I would like to extend a special thank you to Papyrus, 01 and 02, who worked tirelessly to help with preparations for the garden; without their contributions, I don’t think we would have managed to have something presentable for you today. I’d also like to thank Undyne for her, er... perhaps we should say ‘moral support’? She may not have worked on the garden, but without her assistance, I might not have made it to today’s ceremony.”

Undyne, 01 and 02 all bowed following Asgore’s address. Papyrus, who was still acquainting himself with ceremonial etiquette, followed soon after, realizing that a thumbs up probably wasn’t an appropriate response.

“And, while that concludes my part in the ceremony... I would like to say a few personal words, if everyone would be okay with that?”

There was no objection from the small crowd, which was enough for Asgore to say his piece.

“As you all know, we were trapped in the Underground for... quite a long time. Although we are free to live on the surface, not everyone could make it here today; I would like to take a moment for us all to remember them. The ones that we respected, the ones that we lived with... the ones we loved.”

Asgore let out a wistful sigh before looking up to the sky; though there were a few scattered clouds, the sun still shone down brightly on the area.

“For my part, I would like to dedicate this garden to two people in particular that could not be here today: my children, Asriel and Chara. Even after so much time has passed... I do not miss them any less.”

Papyrus was, once again, amazed by Asgore’s ability to maintain his composure. Even though he was discussing something so personal, and even though he was struggling with feelings that Papyrus could never hope to understand, he spoke with grace and dignity.

“And it’s always the smaller things that hit you the hardest, isn’t it? Sometimes, at night, I’ll take in the peaceful silence, only to think about how I can no longer hear them playing or talking to each other during the night. Sometimes, I’ll buy some extra chocolate when I’m shopping, only to realize that I will be the only one eating any. If I’m honest, I try not to leave papers around the house any more, either; they couldn’t be left for an hour before Asriel or Chara would have drawn something on them. Seeing them left blank... it only serves as a painful reminder, no matter how small it seems.”

Despite the situation, Asgore wore a tired smile. It seemed that the happier elements of his memories were shining through.

“As my friends and colleagues will tell you, I... put a great deal of effort into making this garden into something special, a worthy memorial for my lost children. In my efforts, I overexerted myself. Were it not for their help, this garden certainly would not have come to fruition. To anyone who has lost a loved one... I’m sure that you can understand why I did this.”

There were some scattered nods from the crowd, as well as a few people looking to the ground. Papyrus found himself wondering how many of them had gone through similar experiences, and hoped that, if they had, they had a support network like Asgore did.

“However... I have, to an extent, come to understand that this is, perhaps... not the best way to handle these situations. The truth is... I have come to blame myself for the deaths of my loved ones. I find myself looking back over every incident, wondering what I could have done to prevent it from happening. Wondering what I could have done to spend just a little more time with them. It is thanks to the support of my friends that I realize that there are better ways to handle things.”

Undyne crossed her arms with a smile. Whatever she had said and done while he was unwell seemed to have had an impact on him.

“Not only was I pushing myself to extremes that I could not handle, but I was being... well, ‘rather difficult’ would be an understatement. It is not my place to discuss or claim what Asriel or Chara would have wanted, but... to behave like this in their names is disrespectful to them.”

Papyrus wanted to explain to Asgore that he understood, and not to be too hard on himself; judging by the sweat coming through 01 and 02’s helmets, it seemed that he wasn’t the only one. Still, none of them would interrupt Asgore’s speech, especially not while he was pouring his heart out to everyone.

“That is why I wish for today to be a day of peace and celebration. A day where every one of us can come together, and to show our love for those that we hold so dearly. If you would like, you can plant something in honour of the departed... or, if you would like to leave a trinket instead... or maybe even just saying a few words... just something for them to be remembered by, and to bring you some closure. Though there are many more words that could be said... I think I shall leave it there, and open the floor to anyone else who wishes to speak. Thank you.”

As Asgore stepped down, he was given an exceptionally positive reception. It seemed that his words had gotten through to the majority, if not all, of the attendees. Between speaking with people about their experiences and offering some guidance to those that were still struggling, he was kept quite busy.

“...guess he’s doing better, then.”

Papyrus, Undyne, 01 and 02 had offered to stay to help people with planting and general work in the garden. Following Asgore’s speech, the four had been standing around and waiting, until 02 spoke up.

“...think it’s gonna stick? Don’t wanna be a pessimist, but... well, we have to be realistic, too.”

Undyne was countering before the words had even left his mouth.

“Of course it is! It’s gonna stick because WE’RE gonna MAKE it stick!”

01 nodded; it was hard not to get sucked in when Undyne was enthusiastic about something.

“Yeah! We’ve slipped up in the past, but... well, now we know where we were going wrong. We just gotta be better about supporting him, right? Just... I dunno, ask every now and then instead of hoping he’ll tell us?”

The conversation came to a halt there, with a few people asking for help with picking spots and choosing flowers. The four of them separated, trying to help as many people as they could before the day was out.

Although Papyrus had been zooming about, trying to help as many people as he could, there was something odd that he could see out of the corner of his eye the entire time: Monster Kid was lingering about the table where the seeds could be taken.

Once things had reasonably quietened down, Papyrus approached them.

“HELLO, KID! IS EVERYTHING ALRIGHT?”

“Yo! It’s um, pretty cool, it’s just...”

It was obvious that they weren’t in the highest spirits; they were trying to feign a positive attitude, but doubt and confusion were plain to see in their behaviour.

“Is it weird to think that you’ve lost someone, even if you can’t actually remember it happening? L-like... I feel like there’s someone I miss, and I feel like I get what the king was saying, but... I don’t remember losing anyone, and my parents both tell me that I haven’t... I’m probably not making much sense, am I?”

They went from confused to downtrodden quite quickly, but Papyrus was quick to put a hand on their back and offer a reassuring smile.

If he was honest, he _did_ get it. He couldn’t explain it, but...

“IT FEELS AS THOUGH THERE ARE A FEW MISSING PIECES? OR, RATHER... WHEN YOU PUT EVERY PIECE TOGETHER, THE PICTURE SEEMS A LITTLE EMPTIER THAN IT SHOULD BE?”

“Yeah! When I look at everything, I can’t see anything that’s missing, but something still doesn’t feel right. So... I’m guessing you don’t really understand it either, huh?”

“I’M AFRAID I DON’T: LIKE YOURSELF, ALL I REALLY HAVE IS A FEELING THAT SOMETHING IS MISSING.”

Even if it hadn’t really helped to resolve Monster Kid’s situation, they did seem a little less confused, which was certainly a step in the right direction.

“Yo, it... feels really good to know that I’m not alone, ya know? L-like... I thought it was pretty weird, and it’s kinda hard to talk about because it doesn’t really make sense.”

“WELL, SOME THINGS ONLY MAKE SENSE WHEN WE TALK TO PEOPLE ABOUT THEM!”

That got a smile out of Kid; it seemed that they were back to their usual fervour, even if some lingering questions remained.

“So, um... since we both have the same feeling... do you think that we could, maybe, plant some seeds? It might not even be for anybody, but... there’d be nothing wrong with it, right? Just in case?”

Between their hopeful voice and their shining puppy-dog eyes Papyrus would have had immense difficulty saying no to Monster Kid even if he didn’t agree. But... what they said made sense. Even if it might have been a little silly to plant flowers for people that might not even exist...

“I THINK THAT THAT’S AN EXCELLENT IDEA. WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO BRING?”

Kid chose their flowers and Papyrus helped them to find a spot to plant them in. Once all was said and done, Kid nudged Papyrus from the side, thanked him profusely and left the garden. It seemed as though a weight had been lifted from their shoulders as they dashed onward, stumbling twice before regaining their footing.

Papyrus sat there for a moment, feeling a touch unsure of himself. After a few moments’ deliberation he planted the little green trinket he had purchased with the other flowers. He didn’t know why, but he felt glad to remember someone... even if he didn’t actually remember them.

“Ah, there you are! I was hoping to speak with you today, Papyrus!”

As he stood up, he found that Asgore was right behind him. Had he seriously been so distracted that he hadn’t noticed _Asgore_ , of all people?

“Oh, have I interrupted you? My apologies, Papyrus, I didn’t mean-”

“NOT AT ALL, ASGORE! HOW ARE YOU FEELING?”

“Above all... I’m feeling glad, Papyrus. Today turned out quite wonderfully, didn’t it?”

He gestured around, and as Papyrus looked about, he understood what Asgore meant.

There were people laughing together, reminiscing on happy memories. There were some that were crying, while being comforted by other attendees. It seemed that a few people had stepped up and were helping others with work in the garden.

“To see everyone coming together like this... it truly feels as though today was a success.”

“INDEED IT WAS! I’M GLAD TO SEE THAT YOU’RE FEELING BETTER, TOO!”

Although Papyrus had no ill intent, it seemed that Asgore was somewhat saddened by that comment.

“Ah, that was something I was hoping to discuss with you, Papyrus. I... wanted to apologize for my behaviour the other day.”

“THERE’S NO NEED TO WORRY, ASGORE! I KNOW THAT-”

“Papyrus, I appreciate your forgiveness, but... it has yet to be earned.”

Papyrus knew that he had problems with being too willing to forgive. Still, he was totally sure that he forgave Asgore, especially given the circumstances!

“ASGORE, YOU’RE MY FRIEND. EVEN WITHOUT THAT, THE CIRCUMSTANCES WERE EXCEPTIONALLY DIFFICULT, ESPECIALLY FOR YOU. IT WAS GOOD OF YOU TO APOLOGIZE, EVEN IF I DON’T REALLY FEEL THAT YOU NEEDED TO, BUT... NOTHING MORE.”

Asgore took Papyrus’ words in, before allowing himself to smile.

“Very well, Papyrus. Thank you for being so understanding. Although, perhaps, if you’re not too busy this week, we could visit the café again? My treat, this time?”

“I’D LIKE THAT!”

Once they had a date set, Asgore bade Papyrus farewell; Papyrus watched as he began to speak to a young girl, who was carrying a bouquet of roses. Asgore guided her, helping her to plant some roses near the entrance to the garden. It wasn’t long before she ended up in tears, as Asgore comforted her.

Papyrus didn’t hang about; he went to offer as much help as he could before it got dark. Even if he wasn’t quite as good at putting people at ease as Asgore was, that didn't mean that he would give anything less than his best to anyone that needed it!

He had come to learn that, even if you didn’t know someone too well, support from a friendly face could mean the world. Given the fact that they had more-or-less been friendly acquaintances until recently, he was surprised to realize how much he had learned from Asgore, and could only hope that he could have a similar impact on Asgore, given enough time.

He saw that 01 and 02 were sitting nearby, getting ready to pack it in for the evening. They waved to Papyrus before leaving the garden, hand in hand. Papyrus had been hoping to catch up with them a little before they left, but he figured that they would probably see each other again soon, anyway.

Asgore was still speaking with the young girl, and Undyne was nowhere to be seen. As such, Papyrus was left to his own devices. He supposed that he may as well finish up for the night, too; there wasn't much left that he could really do, and it didn't look like anyone really needed any help at this point, anyway.

Despite having checked his pockets four times, he still felt as though he was forgetting something. He hesitantly shrugged the feeling off, before starting his car.

Oh well. He might bring it up with Asgore the next time they were to meet up.

* * *

“Wow, dude, this is awesome!”

Papyrus was just the _tiniest_ bit relieved by Bratty’s excitement. When he bought the satchel, he had thought it would make for an excellent gift. As time progressed, however, he had begun to question whether or not she’d actually like it, given the odd story behind it.

“So, like, do you think I should wash it? I mean... for all we know, there’s some crusty eye gack from a zillion years ago all over the strap.”

He hadn’t thought of that. He quickly looked at his shoulder, trying to see if anything had been left on it. He also found himself wishing that he had gone ahead with wrapping it.

He was pulled from his concerns as Bratty laughed.

“I’m kidding, dude! If it was _that_ bad, you would have noticed.”

“THAT’S A FAIR POINT...”

She rolled her eyes before ushering him upstairs and into her room. She plopped herself down onto the bed as he took a quick glance around.

It was as though two completely different rooms had been smashed together.

For every Mettaton poster or Mew Mew figure on the walls, there was a matching historical document or artefact. She had a bookshelf that was lined with a mixture of albums, celebrity autobiographies and encyclopaedias. Even her wardrobe was the same: one handle had a feather boa hanging from it, the other had an explorer’s hat.

It was a bizarre aesthetic, but one Papyrus appreciated all the same. He watched as she hung the satchel up among some of her other items, taking note of how careful and methodical her actions were; she made space for it, while ensuring that nothing else was damaged in the process.

As such, it was quite jarring when she whipped her laptop out and slammed it down onto the bed.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”

“Well, like, _duhh_. We’re gonna see if we can find anything online about the person who owned the satchel! There might be, like, records and junk on the Undernet!”

Although that was decidedly _not_ what he had been asking about, he couldn’t help but find it endearing all the same. Even if it put him on edge, he figured that she knew what her own property could handle...

“So, um... did you get a name?”

“HMM... I’M AFRAID NOT. ALL I KNOW IS THAT HE WAS MOST LIKELY A CADET, AND THE SATCHEL WAS DAMAGING HIS EYE.”

“His eye... so, he only had one. And it must have been pretty big... WAIT, I’VE TOTALLY GOT IT! Do you think he was, like, an ancestor of that one guy that lived in the Ruins?”

“THE RUINS... OH, WAIT, DO YOU MEAN LOOX?”

She leapt with excitement. The laptop jerked back, and Papyrus was beginning to doubt that Bratty’s level of care was the same across all of her belongings.

“That’s, like, TOTALLY him! This bag would _kill_ that guy!”

“WAIT... BRATTY, HOW DO YOU KNOW HIM?”

“Huh?”

“LOOX LIVED IN THE RUINS. HAVE YOU BEEN THERE BEFORE?”

“Ohh. Uh, no, but the guy had a cousin in Hotland that always talked about how he was really annoying and deserved to be locked in there. Can’t remember his name but he was a real jerk.”

That opened the floor to many questions that Papyrus wasn’t sure he wanted answered. He decided to just roll with it, and they searched through the historical records that were available on the Undernet. It seemed like a long-shot, but...

“Eyewalker! That’s the guy’s last name, right?”

Against all odds, it seemed that there _were_ indeed records of an Eyewalker that had played a part in the Human-Monster War... she clicked the link, and a picture came up.

On their screen was a fellow that looked remarkably similar to Loox; he was a touch wider, but their frames were quite similar. Plus, he had a scar along his eye; it was a stretch to assume that he got it from the satchel, but it was a distinct possibility.

“Listen, listen... Inniecones Eyewalker, an infamous figure during the Human-Monster War. He is primarily known for... having sided with the humans?! After forming a partnership with a human general, he led attacks on several monster bases, leading to the deaths of several high-ranking generals. Late in the war, he had a change of heart, and was promptly slain by the humans.”

The two sat silently for a few minutes. Neither quite knew how to broach conversation after uncovering the mystery of the satchel’s owner.

“...guess we know why Gerson was so quick to pawn it off.”

Immediately after saying that, a giggle slipped from her mouth. It was followed by more hearty laughter, which Papyrus soon joined in on. Admittedly, he wasn’t quite sure that the laughter was appropriate, but if she was comfortable, he supposed he could be too.

“Still, that’s _crazy_. We have, like... a major piece of history on our hands!”

“EVEN IF IT’S... NOT QUITE THE BEST PART OF HISTORY?”

“I mean... yeah, the dude did some terrible things. But that’s what history’s all about, right?”

Was it? Papyrus didn’t really know. His confusion mustn’t have been well hidden, because Bratty leaned forward and began to explain.

“So, like... think of it this way: yeah, owning something that belonged to a historical backstabber sounds pretty weird. Still, this was, like... _there_. It’s not some random junk either, this belonged to an actual person, and it was used during the war. Even if you ignore how crazy valuable it is... I bet it could tell us things that you’d never learn in a history book!”

He still didn’t really understand. He appreciated her enthusiasm; he could tell that this meant a great deal to her, even if it didn’t mean much to him. Still, determined to prove her point, she gingerly took the satchel down and opened it, taking a look inside.

“Okay, so we got... some stale eyedrops, go figure... I think that’s a tooth? Gross... Hey, what’s this?”

She pulled out a small notebook. She opened it, and a small document fell out. She quickly skimmed the notebook. It seemed that something exciting was written within, but Papyrus waited for her to finish. In the meantime, he looked at the document.

It looked like some sort of blueprint. It was hard to tell what was pictured, but it looked like some kind of cannon.

“Dude... this is crazy! So, like, this guy sneaked into a human camp and found out that they had plans to make some kind of super-weapon! He says that it would have been able to destroy entire monster battalions without hurting humans... so he joined them to try to sabotage it. Geez... it only gets sadder from there...”

Well, _that_ certainly hadn’t been in the archives... as soon as the realization hit him, he looked over to Bratty, who seemed to be thinking the same thing that he was.

“...HAVE WE JUST...?”

“...uncovered an undocumented piece of history?”

Within seconds, she had leapt off of the bed, launching into a rant about how they would have to get it appraised, and how they would need to find the right museum to donate it to... it was a lot to take in.

Sensing that he was frazzled, she slowed down, looking at him with a wide smile.

“Dude, this is _awesome_!”

She grabbed him by the hand, pulling him off of the bed and leading him down the stairs, satchel in hand.

“We’ve gotta take it back to Gerson, then we can figure out what to do next! We’re gonna make history!”

Despite his inability to keep up, he found himself smiling all the same. Bratty’s positivity was infectious; she really could get excited without much to go on, and that was something that he admired quite a lot about her.

Although he probably should have been thinking more about their discovery, his mind was on her as they drove towards Gerson’s shop. They still hadn’t picked a label for what they were, nor had they made much progress on a ‘relationship’ level.

And, honestly? Papyrus was fine with that.

Maybe she was his girlfriend, maybe they had just become close friends in a short timespan. He had no idea. Still, he was enjoying the time that they were spending together, and he looked forward to it every time they talked, even if he couldn’t always follow what she was talking about.

Really... he was happy, and it seemed that she was, too. If anything more came of it... well, they’d take things one step at a time.

“Wait, should we have stopped and got him some glamburgers so that he’d be more keen on talking? ...Should _we_ stop for glamburgers, so we don’t go in on an empty stomach?”

Yes, he’d follow one step at a time... even if neither of them really had any clue as to where they were going.

* * *

“NOW, WE’LL TURN THE TEMPERATURE UP, JUST ENOUGH TO BOIL THE NOODLES. I KNOW IT GOES AGAINST UNDYNE’S TEACHINGS, BUT I DON’T THINK THAT TORIEL WOULD APPRECIATE FINDING OUT THAT HER STOVE WAS DESTROYED...”

Frisk giggled as they turned the dial up. They then went to the fridge and grabbed some vegetables; Papyrus had asked them to pick, so that they could experiment and make a new sauce together.

Admittedly, he was keeping a closer eye on Frisk than he normally would. It wasn’t that he didn’t think them capable of making the pasta by themselves, but... well, he had a few things on his mind. Given the fact that he was babysitting while Toriel and sans were visiting a comedy club, it seemed that tonight would be the best opportunity for him to discuss these things.

That being said, he also wanted tonight to be a fun bonding experience between the two of them; he was going to let Frisk decide how hard or soft they wanted the noodles to be, and they would also be the ones choosing what to make the sauce out of.

They returned with some onions, some tomatoes, some peppers and some cheese.

An odd decision, but Papyrus was a skeleton of his word. He mashed up the onions, the tomatoes, the cheese and, despite his reservations, even the peppers, and they got to work on making the sauce.

With the two of them working together, they had some spaghetti (al dente, at Frisk’s request) and their odd sauce made in no time. Frisk seemed quite happy with the result, which was more than enough for Papyrus to feel content with the meal.

This, of course, meant that they would be sitting together. At a table, alone. Nothing to do but eat their food and... talk.

There was no use pushing it aside any longer.

“FRISK... HOW HAVE YOU BEEN FEELING?”

Unsurprisingly, they didn’t expand much beyond telling him that they were feeling good.

“WELL... THAT’S GOOD TO HEAR, BUT... IS ANYTHING TROUBLING YOU, PERHAPS?”

They seemed confused by his question. He had hoped it would be easier to begin the discussion, but he knew deep down that this was going to be difficult, no matter what.

“FRISK... YOU KNOW THAT WE ALL LOVE YOU, AND I KNOW THAT THAT MIGHT MAKE THIS QUESTION DIFFICULT, BUT... DO YOU EVER FEEL UPSET OR AFRAID WHEN YOU THINK BACK ON YOUR TIME IN THE UNDERGROUND?”

Frisk vigorously shook their head, denying that there were any problems, and telling Papyrus that they were happy where they were.

That didn’t have quite the effect that they were hoping for; Papyrus was even more concerned than he had been previously.

“I KNOW THAT IT CAN BE DIFFICULT. TELLING SOMEONE THAT THEY’VE HURT YOU CAN BE SCARY, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT’S SOMEONE YOU LOVE, BUT... IF IT DOES BOTHER YOU, YOU NEED TO BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF. I PROMISE, I WON’T BE MAD OR UPSET IF YOU DO FEEL THIS WAY.”

They looked down at their plate, and didn’t look back up. Still, they weren’t denying that they were having problems, which was definitely something he could work with.

“FRISK... WE ALL LOVE YOU. MYSELF, TORIEL, SANS, UNDYNE, ALPHYS, ASGORE... YOU’RE A PART OF OUR FAMILY, AND WE CAN NEVER THANK YOU ENOUGH FOR ALL OF THE KINDNESS THAT YOU’VE SHOWN TO US. BUT... WE ALL DID SOME BAD THINGS.”

They looked up at him with curiosity; it broke his heart to think of that innocent face going up against Asgore... or being hunted down by Undyne...

Or being thrown about by a Royal-Guard-to-be...

“WE ALL DID THINGS THAT HURT YOU. FOR MY PART, I SUBJECTED YOU TO SOME VERY DANGEROUS PUZZLES, AND EVEN BATTLED YOU WHEN YOU WERE IN NO FIT STATE TO BE FIGHTING.”

Frisk smiled, telling him that it was all okay, and that they had forgiven him. They had become friends, and there was no need to worry about what had happened in the past.

If not for how much he had been thinking about this as of late, Papyrus might not have noticed how forced Frisk’s smile was, or the slight tremble in their shoulders as they made their assurances.

“FRISK... I’M GLAD THAT YOU’VE GIVEN US THIS OPPORTUNITY. THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE BETTER, AND TO BE A REAL FAMILY TO YOU; TO SHOW YOU THE LOVE THAT YOU DESERVE. BUT... THE FACT THAT WE’RE TRYING _NOW_ DOESN’T JUSTIFY WHAT WE DID BEFORE.”

They looked away once again. They looked... guilty? He couldn’t understand how _they_ could feel like they were in the wrong here.

“I’M SORRY FOR MY PART IN HURTING YOU, FRISK. I CAN’T MAKE UP FOR IT WITH ANY AMOUNT OF KIND GESTURES OR COOKING LESSONS, BUT... THERE’S ONE THING THAT I CAN DO.”

He walked over and knelt beside them. Though they still seemed hesitant, they were willing to look him in the eyes. He took their hands in his, and tried his best to convey the sincerity behind his words.

“I CAN MAKE A PROMISE: I PROMISE TO DO WHATEVER I CAN TO MAKE IT UP TO YOU, AND TO BE A GOOD BIG BROTHER TO YOU.”

He knew that Frisk would accept that without complaint, but he also knew that it wasn’t enough. He had to show that he was committed to doing things properly.

“AND... I WANT TO HELP YOU TO FEEL COMFORTABLE IN ANY WAY THAT I CAN... SO, IF YOU’LL LET ME, THERE’S SOMETHING I’D LIKE TO ASK OF YOU.”

Once again, they looked at him with confusion.

“I’D LIKE YOU TO BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF, OKAY? IF YOU FEEL UPSET ABOUT ANYTHING I SAY OR DO, I’D LIKE YOU TO TELL ME SO. AND IF YOU HAVE BAD MEMORIES ABOUT YOUR TIME IN THE UNDERGROUND, I NEED YOU TO ADMIT TO THAT. AND... IF YOU NEED ME TO LEAVE, OR GIVE YOU SOME SPACE BECAUSE YOU’RE REMINDED OF THE WAY THAT I HURT YOU... I NEED YOU TO TELL ME.”

He had definitely caught them off-guard. They looked positively dumbstruck, but he couldn’t stop now.

“AND WHATEVER DECISIONS YOU MAKE... I PROMISE TO HONOUR THEM. EVEN IF I DON’T LIKE THEM, I PROMISE THAT I’LL RESPECT WHAT YOU ASK OF ME. I’M GLAD THAT YOU HAVE SO MUCH ROOM FOR LOVE IN YOUR HEART, FRISK, BUT... I DON’T WANT THAT TO BE AT YOUR EXPENSE. SO I’LL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO MAKE YOU COMFORTABLE. I KNOW IT MIGHT BE A LOT TO ASK, BUT COULD YOU DO THAT FOR ME?”

He couldn’t deny that he was worried; he wouldn’t back down from his promise, and would do whatever it took for Frisk to truly feel safe.

Still... when he said that he wanted to be a good big brother for Frisk, he wasn’t exaggerating; he really did see them as a sibling, and as a member of his family. If it came to it, he’d give them any space they needed, and would take any honest criticisms without complaint, but... he silently hoped that it wouldn’t go any further than that.

It may have been a selfish thing to want, but he truly hoped that Frisk didn’t need him to leave altogether. He would do so if necessary, but... he wanted, more than anything, to have the chance to be a part of their life, and to be the big brother that they deserved.

The silence was broken by a light sniffling. Frisk had begun to cry, and pulled him into a hug. He held them, giving them the chance to let everything out. Whether the tears were glad, upset, overwhelmed... Papyrus didn’t know, but he gave them the opportunity to cry their heart out, before they sat back and began to open up.

As expected... it hurt.

There was so much that they had been hiding: they had asked Toriel to get a stove; they claimed that it was so that she could get more accustomed to the way things were done on the surface, but it was really because they were afraid of seeing her using fire magic. They admitted that, while they loved sans, they felt uncomfortable around him because of some things he had said in the Underground. They made every effort not to be in any dark area with Undyne, and still had nightmares about being chased through Waterfall, quite frequently.

And, being honest, they still found themselves flinching any time Papyrus moved one of his arms too quickly.

It was a lot to take in, and even that was an understatement. He had no idea that they were bottling up so much, and the fact that they hadn’t spoken about this to anyone was... quite unsettling.

Ever since they had left the Underground, Papyrus had made sure never to use blue magic on them again. He had thought that was enough, but evidently, he had come up short.

“I’M GLAD THAT YOU TOLD ME THAT, FRISK. FROM NOW ON, WOULD YOU LIKE TO TELL ME IF MY MOVEMENTS MAKE YOU UNCOMFORTABLE?”

They gave him a small nod. He smiled, feeling immensely proud of them; setting boundaries certainly wasn’t easy, and for someone like Frisk, who seemed to have virtually no boundaries in the first place, it was a huge step.

“WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO TALK WITH ANYONE ABOUT THIS CONVERSATION? TO LET THEM KNOW WHAT YOU’VE TOLD ME?”

They shook their head furiously. They explained that it was too much to tell everyone, and that they would need to do so at their own pace.

As promised, Papyrus would respect their wishes, even if it went against his better instincts.

“OKAY, I’LL KEEP THIS BETWEEN US FOR NOW. BUT I DO HOPE THAT YOU’LL OPEN UP MORE ABOUT YOUR FEELINGS, OKAY? AND... IF YOU NEED ANY HELP, YOU CAN ALWAYS ASK ME.”

They nodded once more, and pulled him into another hug. This hug was much different to the previous one; whereas that one had carried a sense of urgency and a great deal of panic, this one seemed much more... comfortable. Obviously, Frisk still had many problems to work through, but they were content with the progress that they had made today.

When the hug ended, Papyrus looked at them more closely; it became apparent to him that this had been taking quite a toll on them.

They looked as though a terrible weight had been lifted from their shoulders. Their smile, though tired, looked much more sincere. It was crushing to think that they were so readily willing to put their happiness aside for everyone else.

As much as Papyrus wanted to dive in and discuss why they acted this way, he decided against it. He wasn’t sure if it was his place to ask about that, and if it was, he could do so at a later date. Frisk seemed quite tired already, and he didn’t want to overwhelm them with too much.

“WHY DON’T YOU GET READY FOR BED? ONCE YOU’RE COMFORTABLE, I CAN READ YOU A STORY!”

They nodded happily, before hopping from the chair and scampering up the stairs. Papyrus cleaned up after dinner, thinking about how things had gone.

All things considered... they had gone quite well. They didn’t have any intention of asking him to stay away from them (At the moment, at least), which was definitely a good start. Papyrus wasn’t quite sure if he deserved that kindness, but he would absolutely accept it.

They had opened up to him, and admitted that, on some level, they were still afraid of every member of their family. As much as that hurt, he was glad to have been told the truth. As per their wishes, he would keep it between them for now, but... he hoped that they would be willing to open up to the others soon, too.

As he finished up the dishes, he couldn’t help but wonder what the right steps were. While he still wasn’t happy with how Flowey had phrased it... he had a point; Frisk’s judgement was definitely worth questioning. _Did_ he, or any of the other monsters, actually deserve their forgiveness? _Was_ it enough to try as hard as he could to be a better person, or had he and the others passed a point where forgiveness was no longer reasonable?

He slowly made his way up the stairs, a weight on his mind. For now, he would let the issue rest; Frisk was relatively content, and had promised to contact him if that changed. Perhaps, once they had both thought about the situation some more, they could revisit it and see if anything needed to be done. Maybe by that point, Frisk would have opened up to someone else, and whoever that might be could offer a viewpoint that Papyrus couldn’t.

As it stood, he begrudgingly supposed that there was nothing to be done about it, and that he should accept that they had made some good headway already. He made sure that none of his concerns were apparent from his mannerisms or expression as he made his way into Frisk’s room.

Besides, they were owed a bedtime story, and someone as clever as Frisk absolutely needed the stimulation of a good bedtime story to properly get to sleep. He carefully made his way towards their bed, careful not to be too erratic in his movements, and allowed them to pick out a story for him to read.

It wasn’t long before they drifted off to sleep, but Papyrus didn’t leave. Any time they tossed or turned, he was there, doing what he could to soothe them. The guilt mounted when they began to thrash; they jolted awake, and, without thinking, leapt back upon seeing him.

As much as it hurt... he couldn’t deny that it was deserved. Once they had regained their senses, they lay back down awkwardly, unsure of how to proceed. Papyrus reassured them, telling them that their feelings were completely valid, and he’d do whatever was necessary for them to feel comfortable.

He felt his heart break when they asked him to scoot his chair back and keep his hands down in front of him. Nevertheless, he complied. Frisk soon fell back asleep, and it seemed that no nightmares terrorized them the second time around.

Papyrus quietly left the room, heading downstairs to wait for Toriel. Now alone, he allowed everything to truly sink in.

It would take a lot of work before Frisk could ever truly forgive any of them, and that was if they ever _did_. Even if they were making amazing progress, they had a long way to go before they could truly process what had happened to them in the Underground.

Still, Papyrus would do whatever it took to do right by Frisk. That much he was certain of.

* * *

Something felt a little... off.

Not a _bad_ off; he didn’t feel like he was in any kind of danger, nor did he feel as though he had forgotten anything important. He just felt as though... something was different.

It wasn’t until he opened the fridge that morning that everything clicked.

“heya bro, ‘sup?”

“I’LL TELL YOU WHAT’S UP, SANS! THE HOUSE IS LOOKING REMARKABLY TIDY TODAY!”

“probably ‘cause you tidied it last night.”

Well, that was true. Papyrus did tend to tidy up if he found himself with nothing to do; however, that explanation did have a few holes.

“TRUE, BUT THAT DOESN’T EXPLAIN WHY EVERYTHING IN THE FRIDGE IS EXACTLY WHERE I LEFT IT!”

“...gonna go out on a limb and guess it’s because you left it there?”

“INDEED I DID! HOWEVER, IT’S USUALLY AROUND THIS POINT IN THE DAY THAT YOU EITHER TAKE THINGS OUT WITHOUT PUTTING THEM BACK IN OR MIX THEM AROUND SO THAT I CAN’T FIND ANYTHING!”

“guess you're right. i'll make up for it tomorrow by hiding the fridge.”

Something was _definitely_ off. However, it was an ‘off’ that had sans in a good mood, and also had him adhering to Papyrus’ system of organization for the contents of the fridge.

Papyrus also noticed that the newspaper had been brought in and left on the table. He considered pointing it out, but ultimately figured that he had pressed sans enough for now, so he simply sat down and began to read. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed sans looking down at his phone and smiling wider than usual, occasionally tapping a short message out.

Not that he would have _needed_ to see it to know that sans was typing, because sans had insisted on leaving his keyboard sounds on and also kept his volume up.

“so, uh... tori might be stopping by today. that’s cool, right?”

“SANS, YOU DON’T NEED MY PERMISSION TO BRING PEOPLE OVER. BESIDES, YOU KNOW I’D NEVER OBJECT TO TORIEL VISITING!”

Although he was trying not to show it, Papyrus was starting to wonder if something _was_ awry. Not only was sans being productive in the morning, he was also asking for permission to have a visitor over; odd enough in itself, but particularly odd when it was _Toriel_ , of all people!.

“IS THERE ANYTHING ON YOUR MIND, SANS?”

“well, uh... maybe, i guess.”

Oh. Papyrus was still getting used to sans being open about his feelings; it usually took at least an hour of gentle coaxing to draw an answer from sans when something was wrong. To hear him so readily admit that something was up... well, it was a welcome change of pace.

“IS SOMETHING TROUBLING YOU?”

“...no, actually. i mean, obviously, there are always gonna be some things, but... i’m actually feelin’ pretty okay.”

“HMM... I WONDER, IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE THAT’S BEEN OUT OF THE ORDINARY AS OF LATE? ANYTHING YOU’VE BEEN DOING THAT YOU WOULDN’T NORMALLY DO?”

“probably? not really keepin’ track, if i’m honest.”

“WELL, I NOTICED THAT YOU’VE BEEN CHANGING YOUR CLOTHES A LITTLE MORE FREQUENTLY. YOU’VE ALSO BEEN PUTTING MORE EFFORT INTO EATING PROPERLY, EVEN IF IT’S JUST HAVING A BETTER MEALTIME ROUTINE...”

Come to think of it, sans had made quite a few subtle changes to his behaviour as of late. Papyrus didn’t say anything other than the odd word of encouragement, but perhaps there _was_ something more to it?

“maybe you and tori are finally rubbin’ off on me.”

He said it with a trademarked wink and grin. That alone would have been enough to tip Papyrus off that something wasn’t quite right with his explanation, not to mention the fact that it seemed a little too easy.

Still, if he pushed too hard, he could end up undoing sans’ hard work, and he certainly wasn’t about to impede his brother’s progress!

“WELL, I SUPPOSE THAT MAKES SENSE. THE CHARMS OF THE GREAT PAPYRUS CAN ONLY BE RESISTED FOR SO LONG!”

Papyrus didn’t miss the telltale relaxing of sans’ shoulders once the topic was put to rest. He’d certainly be keeping an eye on his brother, if only to see if his theory was correct.

The day progressed without much excitement; after breakfast, they worked together to clean the dishes. Admittedly, Papyrus was doing most of the work; he washed the dishes thoroughly, sans dried them very _un_ -thoroughly, and Papyrus put them away afterwards. Still, he was playing a more active part than he normally would, and Papyrus certainly wouldn’t complain about that!

Afterwards, the two sat around the living room; sans returned to his phone, while Papyrus tried to read a book on horticulture that Asgore had lent him.

If nothing else, he was quite glad that Asgore had made so many notes; they made certain topics much easier to understand.

He didn’t know how much time had passed before there was a knock on the door. Much to his surprise, sans stood up and went to answer it; he didn’t dash over, but the fact that he had stood up before Papyrus was quite a shock.

“who’s there?”

“Goat!”

“goat who?”

“Goat to open the door if you want to know!”

The two laughed as sans pulled the door open. Toriel immediately pulled him into a hug, which he reciprocated.

Papyrus had seen the two of them go through this routine so many times, but they never seemed to get tired of it. They were always so excited to open the door, and they always had a new joke to share. He was never able to wipe the smile off of his face when he saw how excited sans got when he knew it was her on the other side of the door.

Once they had broken their embrace, sans brought Toriel into the living room. It was only then that Papyrus noticed her attire:

In place of her usual robe, she was wearing a t-shirt and shorts. He couldn't help but notice a few loose threads in the short, nor what appeared to be a mustard stain in the shirt. He had never seen her in such scruffy clothing, but... well, she seemed to be in high spirits. If it made her happy, there was no reason for him to complain!

“Hello, Papyrus! It’s lovely to see you, my dear!”

The two engaged in polite conversation for a moment, but he didn’t stay for long. He enjoyed Toriel’s company, but he knew how close she and sans were, and he didn’t want to intrude on one of the few deep social connections that sans had.

After a few minutes, he said his goodbyes before heading up the stairs. Just at the top, he stalled for just a second as he tuned in to the conversation:

“so, i might have taken a few of your suggestions on board...”

“Oh? Do tell!”

“well, i got up early this mornin’, for one.”

“Oh, how lovely! Did that change anything for you?”

“...kinda did, actually. got to have breakfast with papyrus. honestly, feels like i’ve been missin’ out a lot. never noticed how good his cooking’s gotten.”

“I’d be willing to make the assumption that the cooking wasn’t the best thing about your morning?”

“not by a longshot.”

Papyrus relished in the fuzzy feeling that overtook him as he went into his room.

It wasn’t difficult to keep himself occupied; he had friends to chat with, puzzles to work on, horticultural books to pretend he understood... there was no shortage of things for him to do.

And yet, for the multitude of other tasks he _could_ be focusing on, his attention was constantly being drawn back to the resounding laughter that he could hear coming from downstairs.

He didn’t commit to any one particular task; he drifted from one thing to another, allowing himself to be distracted every time he heard a laugh. It was quite relaxing, in a way; true, he couldn’t really be too productive if he was letting his focus wander elsewhere every few minutes, but knowing that the two of them were happy made it easy to just... sit there.

Why, he could almost just... rest his eyes for a moment... and drift... off...

“AAAHHHHHHH!!!”

He leapt up with such speed that he wouldn’t have been surprised if some of his bones had been left behind. He didn’t even bother with the stairs, hopping over the banister and making his way into the kitchen.

Toriel was standing in one spot, a hand over her mouth. There was fear in her eyes, if one couldn’t already tell by her vicious trembling. Beside her, sans was slumped over the counter, barely moving.

“Papyrus, I... I don’t know what to do! Something is wrong with him!”

Papyrus, worry building within him, sped over to his brother’s side, turning him over. Though Toriel was still terrified, any concern that Papyrus had dissipated immediately.

“...HE FELL ASLEEP.”

“I... what? Asleep? But we were in the middle of a conversation! He didn’t seem bored...”

Papyrus hefted sans over his shoulder, as he had done on many occasions before, and began to carry him up to his room. Toriel followed, trying to keep an eye on sans to make sure that nothing was wrong with him.

Upon entry, Papyrus noted that sans’ room was somewhat cleaner. It was still a disorganized mess, but there weren’t any lingering smells, which was a welcome change.

Papyrus placed his brother onto the bed, after which Toriel wrapped him up in a blanket. It seemed that the steady rise and fall of his body confirmed to her that he really _had_ fallen asleep. She shook her head fondly before returning to the kitchen with Papyrus.

“So... is this really a common occurrence?”

“IT’S CERTAINLY NOT THE FIRST TIME THAT THIS HAS HAPPENED!”

“But... how?! I can understand being tired, or needing to stop to take breaks, but... falling asleep without warning? How does that happen?”

“I’VE BEEN ASKING THAT QUESTION FOR YEARS!”

The two chuckled, before a silence befell the pair. Even with Papyrus’ explanation, there was a lingering question that went unasked: what had led to sans falling asleep?

Despite the question being unasked, it wouldn’t go unanswered.

“IT HAPPENS WHEN HE REALLY PUSHES HIMSELF. HE DOES GET TIRED VERY EASILY, BUT HE SPENDS ENOUGH TIME NAPPING THAT MOST PEOPLE DON’T NOTICE. I’VE NOTICED THAT HE’S BEEN PUTTING MORE EFFORT IN IN GENERAL LATELY... I SUPPOSE THAT IT’S CATCHING UP WITH HIM.”

“Oh... I may be at least partially to blame for that. I’ve been making a few suggestions to him – just small ones! - to help with his moods. Things like waking up early, or doing some small chores and working his way up... I must have pushed him too hard.”

“TORIEL, IF YOU PUSHED HIM TOO HARD, HE WOULDN’T HAVE DONE IT.”

He put a hand on her shoulder, wanting to reassure her. Guilt was written all over her face, and Papyrus wanted to shut that down as quickly as he could.

“SANS IS... NOT THE TYPE TO BE PRESSURED INTO THINGS. IF HE DOESN’T WANT TO DO SOMETHING, HE JUST WON’T DO IT. TRUST ME.”

His attempt to lighten the situation didn’t have much of an effect. Still, he didn’t give up; he pressed on, wanting to make it clear to Toriel that she hadn’t done anything wrong.

“THINGS ARE DIFFERENT WITH YOU. WHENEVER YOU’RE INVOLVED, HE GETS SO EXCITED! HE REALLY DOES ENJOY THE TIME HE SPENDS WITH YOU, AND HE CERTAINLY DOESN’T FIND YOU BORING! IF HE WAS DOING CHORES AT YOUR SUGGESTION... HE OBVIOUSLY RESPECTS YOU A GREAT DEAL.”

“I appreciate what you’re saying, my dear, but... why wouldn’t he tell me that he was getting tired? He didn’t even hint at it! I wouldn’t have known at all if not for what happened!”

“HE’S ALWAYS HAD DIFFICULTY WITH TAKING CARE OF HIMSELF. HE... STRUGGLES. I DON’T REALLY THINK IT’S MY PLACE TO SAY MUCH MORE THAN THAT.”

“Ah, I see. I suppose that that would make sense... I did not mean to pry, this was just... quite a shock. I know that he has difficulty admitting it when he's having trouble keeping up, but... I didn't realize that it was to such an extent as this...”

Despite his efforts, Toriel was still downtrodden. Still, it wasn’t easy to be cheerful when such topics came up. Unless, of course, he approached them from a different angle:

“STILL, I CAN SAY THIS MUCH: HE’S GETTING BETTER. HE’S DEVELOPING SOMETHING OF A SCHEDULE FOR EATING, EVEN IF HIS MEALS ARE STILL RATHER QUESTIONABLE AT TIMES. HE’S BEEN MORE OPEN TO SHARING HIS INTERESTS INSTEAD OF ALWAYS INDULGING MINE. THIS MORNING, HE EVEN GOT UP EARLY AND HELPED WITH THE CHORES!”

By the time he had finished praising sans, he was beaming with pride. Saying it out loud really did make it clear that sans had been making great progress; it may have been slow, but it had also been very steady.

“YOU’VE BEEN A VERY POSITIVE INFLUENCE IN HIS LIFE, TORIEL! HE’S NOT GOING TO GET BETTER IN A DAY, BUT YOU ENCOURAGE HIM IN WAYS THAT I CAN’T. SO... DON’T THINK THAT YOU’VE DONE ANYTHING WRONG TODAY. IT WILL TAKE TIME BEFORE HE CAN OVERCOME HIS PROBLEMS, AND SOME OF THEM... SOME OF THEM WILL NEVER REALLY GO AWAY. SO IT’S UP TO US TO MATCH THOSE PROBLEMS! IF THEY NEVER GO AWAY, THEN WE WON’T EITHER!”

She had begun to smile during his rant, and it only got wider as he progressed. She nodded firmly, before looking off towards sans’ room.

“Indeed. Still, even if I’m not going away... I suppose there’s not much I can do right now.”

“IT USUALLY TAKES AT LEAST THREE HOURS FOR HIM TO WAKE UP, IF NOT MORE. THAT BEING SAID, I WOULDN’T MIND IF YOU WANTED TO STICK AROUND FOR A CUP OF TEA?”

Upon hearing his offer, she seemed... nervous? He wasn’t aware of anything he’s said that could have made her uneasy!

“Actually, Papyrus, to tell you the truth... I’ve never really been overly fond of tea. As queen, I was expected to meet certain... standards. I was always supposed to be wearing my royal robes, only speaking about certain things, and, of course... every social function involved drinking tea.”

Ah. All of a sudden, her casual attire made much more sense.

“That being said... I wouldn’t turn down a soda, if you have any?”

“OF COURSE!”

Papyrus got her a soda, and the two engaged in idle chatter once more. She didn’t stay for too long; outside of general conversation, there wasn’t too much for them to really connect on. Toriel bade him farewell, asking him to take care of sans.

Once she had left, Papyrus checked sans’ room once more, for good measure. The stout skeleton hadn’t stirred, still snoozing peacefully on his mattress. Papyrus thought it best to leave him be; he could explain what had happened when he woke up.

As he left sans’ room, he couldn’t help but think about how much sans and Toriel were rubbing off on one another.

He never thought he’d see the day that sans was up early and helping with chores. He _certainly_ never thought he’d see Toriel in casual wear drinking a soda. Still, despite how jarring the changes were, he was more than happy with them.

It was a shame that Papyrus couldn’t really help sans or Toriel in the way that they helped each other; they had a connection with each other that he just couldn’t match.

Still, seeing how happy they made each other, and how comfortable they were becoming with themselves due to each other’s influence... well, it was impossible not to be glad that they had each other.

* * *

“How about... OH, there’s this old-timey diner near the river, I hear they have some choice dishes!”

“THEY WERE SHUT DOWN LAST MONTH, APPARENTLY SOME OF THEIR INGREDIENTS WERE... NOT VERY LEGALLY ACQUIRED. WHAT ABOUT THAT BAKERY THAT SELLS MOON PIES? WE HAVEN’T BEEN THERE IN A WHILE!”

“Nah, I feel like one of the bakers does something weird with the bread... plus, I can never understand what anyone in there is saying!”

Admittedly, though their friendship had become much stronger... there _were_ things that tended to become more difficult when you were honest with people.

Finding a good place to get lunch was one of those things.

“MAYBE WE SHOULD JUST DRIVE AROUND TOWN AND SEE IF ANYWHERE NEW HAS OPENED UP?”

“Well... we COULD do that... or...”

He didn’t even have to look at her to know that she was doing her best attempt at a puppy dog look. It always came across as more of a barracuda than a puppy, but he understood the sentiment all the same. If she was giving him that look, she could only mean one thing.

“WHAT DID YOU HAVE IN MIND?”

“How about... ooh, STEAKS! We could make steaks, right?”

It had been quite a while since they had cooked together; since Papyrus had been setting some clearer boundaries, the kitchen had been off-limits. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust her; it was just difficult to be sure of what he was comfortable with.

Ever since the incident with his car, he had been much more careful with his possessions around her. That, in particular, had been quite difficult; not because she wasn’t co-operating, but because she _was_.

She’d suggest something to do, but Papyrus would hesitate. She understood each time, of course, that it wasn’t any lack of interest, but a concern for his belongings. Her features would become downcast for a moment, and she’d quickly move on to something else.

It was soul-crushing. Her quiet resignation spoke volumes, and it often resulted in Papyrus trying to redetermine whether or not he should try to risk whatever she had in mind. Ultimately, however, he’d stand his ground; it wouldn’t be fair to either of them if he backtracked and undid all of the progress that they had made.

Cooking, in particular, had been off the table; the two missed it dearly, but it just wasn’t feasible given the circumstances. He just couldn’t afford to replace an entire kitchen and its contents if Undyne took things too far. And, as guilty as he felt to admit it... he wasn’t quite sure that he trusted Undyne _not_ to take things too far.

Not for any lack of effort on her part; the work she had been putting into maintaining their friendship was nothing short of commendable. Still... she had lapses now and again.

Nothing serious, of course; the odd occasion where she’d forget to wipe her boots before hopping into his car, times here and there where she’d be a little too harsh over a difference in opinion... he knew that none of it was ever done out of malice, but the fact remained that she still hadn’t gotten a complete handle on things.

Not to mention, he still made mistakes, too; he didn’t always stay true to himself, backing down in some cases because it was more convenient than admitting that he disagreed with her. There were still times when, instead of explaining a boundary to her, he’d get annoyed that she didn’t already know it, despite the fact that he hadn’t actually made the problem clear to her.

As such, he hadn’t been comfortable with having her in his kitchen, and Alphys had put her foot down on them cooking in hers; given the amount of paper and flammable liquids she had around the house, she wasn’t willing to risk anything going wrong. A viewpoint that both he and Undyne respected and agreed with.

He pulled over; he needed to give this discussion his full concentration.

“I... THINK THAT WE COULD DO THAT.”

Her eyes lit up like fireworks.

“SERIOUSLY? Okay, okay, so we gotta get the steaks, obviously. Then we gotta-”

“UNDYNE, WAIT. I WANT TO LAY OUT SOME GROUND RULES FIRST.”

He hated to put a stop to her when she was showing such unbridled enthusiasm, but he knew that it would be better in the long-term if he made sure that things didn’t go wrong.

“Oh, uh... right. So, what’d you have in mind?”

“WELL, THE MOST OBVIOUS POINT WOULD BE TO PUT A LIMIT ON THE HEAT. NOTHING ABOVE FIVE HUNDRED DEGREES.”

“Okay, that’s actually pretty-”

“FAHRENHEIT.”

If not for how seriously he was taking the conversation, he would have laughed at her disappointed pout.

“Aww, fine. Guess we can work with that.”

“ALSO... IF YOU’RE TENDERIZING THE STEAK, YOU HAVE TO BE CAREFUL. EITHER YOU ONLY USE NECESSARY FORCE OR WE AGREE ON A SANITARY SURFACE FOR YOU TO GIVE IT YOUR BEST SHOT.”

She was ecstatic to hear the latter option.

“Got it. I’ll find somewhere solid, and I’ll make sure it’s clean!”

“I GUESS THE ONLY OTHER MAJOR THING IS TO JUDGE THE SITUATION YOURSELF; IF YOU’RE NOT SURE ABOUT THE IMPACT SOMETHING MIGHT HAVE, HOLD OFF AND SAY IT TO ME FIRST?”

“No prob. With that outta the way, let’s DO THIS!”

Her fervour was infectious; he found himself getting quite excited as they stopped at the supermarket to pick up the necessary ingredients.

With everything prepared, they made their way to his house and got themselves ready to cook. Despite everything, Undyne paused when she saw his hands shake as he tied his apron.

“Hey... you sure you’re comfortable with this? We can hold off for a while if you still have doubts.”

Her voice was so sincere; there was obvious disappointment at the notion of cancelling the plan, but the worry for his wellbeing outweighed it.

“TRUTHFULLY... I’M NOT TOTALLY SURE. DESPITE HAVING LAID OUT SOME FAIR RULES, AND DESPITE THE FACT THAT I KNOW YOU’LL FOLLOW THEM...”

“...you're still worried that something will go wrong.”

Her tone wasn’t accusatory in the slightest. It was a simple statement of a fact, and one that he couldn’t disagree with.

“YES. BUT I STILL WANT TO DO THIS. ONE STEP AT A TIME, RIGHT?”

“One step at a time.”

With that, Papyrus ran through his checklist to ensure that they had everything: onions, lemon, parsley, salt and pepper, cheese, sour cream, butter, olive oil, and, of course, the steaks.

He laid most of the ingredients out on the counter, outside of what would be best left in the fridge in the meantime, of course. This left them with some time to kill; they needed to let the steak come up to room temperature, and would need to preheat the grill when the steaks were almost ready.

“So, uh... should we start looking for this ‘sanitary surface’ now?”

As careful as she was being to be respectful, the desire to pound the steaks was unmissable. He couldn’t help but crack a smile as they took a look around to see where she could do that without breaking his furniture.

After a relatively thorough search, the two wound up empty handed. Not a single surface in the house was up to standard.

“And we’ve checked every room, right?”

He ran over every room in the house, and at least one of them had checked there already. With that, he was at a loss. Unless there was some kind of secret room...

...perhaps like the one in Snowdin?

“UNDYNE, I HAVE A CRAZY IDEA.”

“I’m all about crazy ideas! Whatcha thinkin’?”

He nudged her out of the way, before opening the door underneath the sink. Just like in Snowdin, there was a secret passage.

“WH- SINCE WHEN DO YOU HAVE A SECRET PASSAGE IN YOUR HOUSE?!”

“I ONLY FOUND OUT ABOUT IT RECENTLY!”

They made their way in and there was a little cave, just like in Snowdin. The only difference was that this one was just about empty.

“WE SHOULD TEST THE WALLS TO SEE HOW DURABLE THEY ARE.”

Undyne nodded, before launching herself directly into one of the walls. With a resounding ‘thud’ and “OOF”, she crashed into the wall before falling onto the floor. Within moments, she was standing upright, a grin on her face.

“Oh yeah. This place is PERFECT. You wanna clean the place down while I get the steaks?”

He nodded and got to work. It didn’t take long for Undyne to return with the steaks, so Papyrus tried to move as quickly as he could. Once he was satisfied, he gave her the go ahead to pulverize the meat.

He left the room, hoping that the steaks would still be in one piece when she was done, and began to preheat the grill. Undyne returned, handing him two slabs of meat that were surprisingly intact. Thinner, sure, but she hadn’t turned them into a mush, which was a solid win in his book.

After that, everything went according to plan; Papyrus took the lead, with interjections from Undyne here and there. Some he followed (“Dude, we definitely don’t need that much onion”), others he didn’t (“Just hock the whole butter stick in there, it’ll save so much time!”), but he made sure to listen to each suggestion she made.

Within ten minutes, the steaks were ready to be served. Undyne plopped herself down at the kitchen table, having set out the cutlery, while Papyrus dished up their meal. Before he had even sat down, Undyne had taken a chunk out of her steak.

She certainly seemed happy with the end result.

“Dude... THIS IS INCREDIBLE! We gotta do this more often!”

As Undyne tore through her meal, he was a touch slower with his. Not only was he savouring his food, but also the experience itself.

There they were, in his kitchen. They had cooked something without so much as an errant flame or a broken utensil. They were enjoying a decent meal together, something that both of them actually enjoyed eating.

And they had come so far since the incident with the car. Their relationship, despite being the very same at its core, had changed so much: he was finally being _honest_ with her, not fearing that she’d get sick of him if their opinions didn’t align. She was putting more of an effort in to respect him, even if it made things less fun for her at times.

Yes, there were difficulties; finding places to eat or things to do could be a nightmare given their differing temperaments and opinions on how closely laws pertaining to property damage should be followed. Still, as they had both learned and accepted, there were no difficulties that the two of them couldn’t overcome if they worked together.

He was truly happy to call Undyne his best friend, and given the goofy smiles and culinary discussions being shared between the two, he had no doubt that she reciprocated.

“YES, WE REALLY SHOULD.”

* * *

Everything was set up; Alphys had been more than willing to help once she heard his idea. Admittedly, she had done most of the work, but he had done what he could to help.

It had been somewhat difficult to set up, especially given... well, everything about Mt. Ebott, but they had managed in the end. Hopefully.

Today would be the day that he would be testing it out, to ensure that it was working properly. He just hoped that Flowey had followed his instructions.

He closed the door to his room and turned his computer on. Once it had booted up, he ran the program that Alphys had installed. He knew that it was up and running, but the screen was blank. That was to be expected; he _was_ a touch early. Even so, he couldn’t help but feel the _teensiest_ twinge of worry.

Well, okay, perhaps it was more than just a twinge. After all of the work they had put into this, he didn’t want to let Flowey down. No matter how much he tried to hide it, Papyrus had seen the budding hope in his friend’s eyes, which had only grown as he watched the development of the project.

If this project failed, Papyrus didn’t know if he’d ever see that hope again.

Thankfully, he wasn’t given much time to worry; the blank screen was replaced, and in front of him, he could see a very confused flower.

“Hello? Hello?”

“HELLO, FLOWEY! IS IT WORKING ON YOUR END?”

“No, could you move to the side a little?”

“LIKE THIS?”

Papyrus had been sure that he was perfectly in-frame, but perhaps he had made a mistake.

“Okay, now move back a little...”

“HERE?”

“Keep going...”

He was bewildered, as going back any further would make it difficult for him to see his _own_ monitor, but he went along with it.

“HOW ABOUT NOW?”

“Almost, now turn around!”

“ALRI- WAIT A MINUTE!”

Flowey snickered, which very quickly turned to full-blown laughter as Papyrus huffed and returned to his original spot.

“Sorry, sorry. Cameras give the perfect opportunity for pranks.”

“WELL, JAPERY ASIDE, IT SEEMS THAT THE SYSTEM IS WORKING!”

“Yeah, sure does. I didn’t think you were actually gonna see it through. I mean, I knew you’d _try_ , but it didn’t really seem possible.”

“ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS!”

Flowey smiled and shook his head. After a short silence, he took a quick look around the device that had been set up in the Underground for him.

“So, uhh... how does this thing work, exactly? Like, is this just for prescheduled meetings? I mean, if your computer has to be on for a call to go through...”

“OH, RIGHT! YOU SHOULD SEE A GREEN BUTTON ON THE SIDE OF YOUR DEVICE. PRESS THAT, AND I’LL GET A NOTIFICATION ON MY PHONE, AND I’LL KNOW TO TURN MY COMPUTER ON! IF I CAN’T RESPOND FOR WHATEVER REASON, I CAN SEND A NOTIFICATION BACK TO YOU!”

“Huh. So, what’s to stop me from waiting ‘til midnight and sending you a million notifications?”

Flowey bore a wicked grin, but he wasn’t fooling Papyrus.

“MY PHONE HAS AN OFF BUTTON.”

“You’d turn your phone off on _me_? The nerve!”

The fact that he stuck his tongue out made it clear that he hadn’t actually taken any offense. Still, Papyrus didn’t want to take any risks.

“YOU KNOW I WOULDN’T. BUT! I’D HOPE THAT YOU’D HAVE RESPECT FOR THE VERY IMPORTANT SLEEP SCHEDULE OF A ROYAL GUARD LIKE MYSELF!”

“Ehhh... we’ll see.”

Flowey winked at him, and Papyrus was no longer completely certain that he was joking. Either way, now that Flowey understood how the system worked, they could move on to actual conversation!

“SO... HOW HAVE YOU BEEN FEELING, LATELY?”

“Straight in the deep end, huh? Fair enough... uh, kinda better, I guess?”

Flowey seemed to have been expecting a long discussion on his feelings. Yet, despite his apparent readiness, he seemed to be having difficulty articulating his feelings.

“Like... yeah, I’ve still got a lot going on in my head. And, to be honest, I still find myself wondering about Chara, and if there’s a way to bring them back. But... I got some kind of closure. That’s a start.”

“INDEED IT IS! HAVE YOU PUT MUCH THOUGHT INTO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO MOVING FORWARD?”

“Not really... to be honest, I’ve put more thought into what I _don’t_ want to do.”

That was an interesting angle to look at things from. It mightn’t be the easiest to work with, but it was definitely something.

“WHAT DID YOU HAVE IN MIND?”

“Well, I _do_ want to try to figure out if there’s a way to restore my soul, but... not yet. I appreciate this set up, and all of the work involved, but... I still don’t want to see her. I’m not ready for that yet.”

Even if he had been expecting it, Papyrus was still a little disappointed. He couldn’t fault Flowey, given the circumstances; he didn’t blame Alphys at all, but he understood why Flowey had such a deep-seated resentment for her. He hoped that her work on setting this project up would have earned her some goodwill, but he had expected that it wouldn’t be that easy.

“I get it, alright? I know that what happened was an accident, and she never would have let it happen on purpose. But... she still did. Even if it was an accident, it’s _her_ fault that I’m like... _this_. Honestly... I hate her, Papyrus. I know that she’s sorry, and that she’d do anything to fix things, but I just... don’t want anything to do with her if I can avoid it.”

What was most disconcerting to Papyrus was the complete lack of venom or vitriol in Flowey’s voice. It was clear that he wasn’t exaggerating or trying to get a reaction; he truly did hate Alphys, and Papyrus didn’t think he had any right to try to change that, if he even _could_.

“THAT’S FAIR. THE KEY TO DOING THINGS RIGHT IS TO DO THEM AT A PACE YOU’RE COMFORTABLE WITH.”

“Huh. Didn’t think you’d be so cool with me openly hating someone you care about.”

“I MEAN... I THINK THAT SAYING THAT I’M COOL WITH IT ISN’T QUITE ACCURATE. I UNDERSTAND WHERE YOU’RE COMING FROM, AND I REALLY CAN’T BEGRUDGE YOU FOR FEELING THE WAY THAT YOU DO.”

“Fair enough, I guess. So, uh, about the other things?”

Right. There were other things that Flowey had in mind that he didn’t want to do.

“WHAT OTHER THINGS?”

“I don’t want to talk to anyone else yet. I still don’t really feel comfortable with trying to be friends with anyone other than you and Frisk.”

Well, that one had been more expected, at least. Papyrus had asked Alphys to set the program up in a way that it could connect to the Undernet; that way, Flowey would be able to communicate with anyone that had an Undernet account.

Obviously, he hadn’t been expecting Flowey to warm up to the idea right away, but he wanted the option to be there, just in case.

“RIGHT. ACTUALLY, HAVE YOU SPOKEN MUCH WITH FRISK AS OF LATE?”

“A little. They stopped by the other day... I didn’t tell them to go away or threaten to kill their family, so yay for me I guess.”

Papyrus smiled. Even if Flowey phrased it in a self-deprecating manner, that really _was_ progress for him. To just... rein himself in; not pushing Frisk away, not trying to spook them into discomfort so that they’d leave voluntarily... it definitely showed that Flowey had it in him to make friends, even if it would be a slow burn.

“GOOD JOB! WE MIGHT HAVE ANOTHER MEMBER IN THE FLOWEY FAN CLUB SOON!”

“...You forgot to tell me where the off button is on this thing.”

The two laughed, though Flowey’s laughter quickly ebbed away.

“There’s one other thing I had in mind.”

Whatever he had in mind, it wasn’t something good; he spoke with resignation, and what little body language he had conveyed that he had been stewing on this.

“WHAT’S THAT?”

“It's been on my mind ever since our little... adventure. It gave me a lot to think about: just who I am, and what makes a person ‘who they are’. Sure, I may be Asriel in theory, but... I’ve seen things that you wouldn’t understand, Papyrus; I’ve seen what people can become in different circumstances. The choices you make can lead to your life going differently and, as a result, you become different. Some people can go through things and come out more or less the same, but some people... well, they become someone else entirely.”

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN?”

“I mean... there’s always a ‘you’, right? No matter what, that ‘you’ exists; you'll always have the Papyrus that's talking to me right now. But things can happen and make that ‘you’... disappear. Like, Mettaton used to be super shy and all, but now... that version of him is gone because of the choices he made. When something like that happens, you’re not ‘you’ any more; you’re someone else. Again, easy example: he wasn't always Mettaton, but he _became_ Mettaton. I’ve seen it happen; even if you're the same person in theory, it's possible for a version of you to just... disappear. Gone, probably never really coming back.”

Despite his smile, his eyes gave away how tired he was, and how much this was eating away at him.

“Asriel Dreemurr is dead, and I can’t keep clinging onto the idea that I’m still him. You gave me hope, Papyrus; hope that Asriel can come back some day. Right now, he’s still there, somewhere, but... as it stands, he’s dead.”

“I... I SEE. SO, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR YOU?”

“For better or for worse, I’m Flowey. Until I have reason to believe that my soul can be restored, I don’t want to consider myself as the same person any more. If I ever do meet with... Toriel and Asgore again, they’re not my mom and dad; they’re Toriel and Asgore.”

Papyrus wanted to protest, but Flowey seemed resolute; still, if nothing else, he wanted to be _sure_ that Flowey was making the right decision.

“WHAT IN PARTICULAR BROUGHT ABOUT THIS DECISION?”

“It... hurts, Papyrus. I’m still not capable of love; maybe that’ll change over time, but there’s a good chance that it won’t. What would it do to them? To think that their beloved son became... _this_? How would they react? Do you think Asgore would blame himself for authorizing the experiments in the first place? Toriel hasn’t exactly hidden how much she hates me, do you think she could handle the shock of finding out who I really am?”

He hadn’t actually considered that; in his own mind, the three of them would reunite happily and work towards something better, but... Flowey had a point. It mightn’t be that simple.

There was no guarantee that he would be forgiven, and even if he was, that didn’t necessarily mean that they would accept him back into their lives. It was entirely possible that they might turn him away, which would irreparably damage the three of them.

“But let’s say that they do accept me, and it’s all happy families for a while... _I don’t love them any more, Papyrus_. I want to, but... I’m not capable of it. Maybe with time, things might change, but there’s no guarantee on that. Imagine getting your kid back, only to realize that they can’t love you. They’ve... they’ve moved on, Papyrus. They’re happy without me. Is it fair to risk that for something that probably won’t even work?”

“I... I SUPPOSE I UNDERSTAND WHERE YOU’RE COMING FROM.”

He couldn't really argue against any of what Flowey had said; as much as he believed that things would go right, he couldn’t guarantee that they would. He didn’t believe that Flowey’s capacity for love was truly gone, but... it was definitely stunted. Perhaps it _would_ be for the best to try to develop that further before trying anything.

“STILL... DO YOU REALLY WANT TO GIVE UP ON WHO YOU ARE?”

“Who I _was_ , Papyrus. And yeah, I do.”

“BUT-”

“Listen, Papyrus. So much of what I do is influenced by my past; what Asriel would have done, what Chara would have wanted, what led to everything going wrong... I’m clinging to all of that, Papyrus, even though I can’t be that person any more. It’s better if I just do what everyone else did and... move on. I can’t keep holding on, hoping that I find a way to restore my soul.”

He spoke with conviction; despite the melancholic nature of the topic, he didn’t seem upset. In fact, he actually seemed somewhat relieved to be saying it to someone.

“I’m not Asriel Dreemurr any more, and I’m done trying to be. I’m Flowey the Flower, and whatever I do moving forward is because of what _I_ think; not Asriel, Chara or anyone else. If things change, so be it, but for now... I’m living my life. Not going back over the past, not trying to account for the future.”

Papyrus needed a second to take it all in. In all honesty, despite his misgivings, it actually seemed like a good idea; he only ever knew Flowey as Flowey, but Flowey had only ever known himself to be “not Asriel”. Perhaps it was for the best that he took the time to rebuild his identity, and to find out what he wanted to be.

“I THINK I UNDERSTAND. IS THERE ANYTHING I CAN DO TO HELP YOU?”

“I guess just... keep doing what you’re doing. I have a mean streak that Asriel didn’t, and I don’t plan on losing that. Still... you push me to be better, and not just because it’s what Asriel would have done. So... maybe... teaching me to be good? From the ground up?”

“I CAN WORK WITH THAT!”

Papyrus thought about it for a moment. While he had no issue with helping his friend, he didn’t want Flowey to feel as though he was going to be dependent on him.

“ALTHOUGH... I WAS WONDERING IF I COULD ASK A SIMILAR FAVOUR OF YOU?”

“What?”

“YOU’VE HELPED ME A LOT IN THE PAST. THE TRUTH IS... IT _IS_ POSSIBLE TO BE TOO NICE. SO... IF I HELP YOU TO BE NICER...”

“...You want me to help you to quit being a doormat?”

“I... WOULDN’T PHRASE IT LIKE THAT, BUT YES, THAT’S THE IDEA.”

Flowey smirked. He certainly wasn’t wrong about that mean streak.

“I can work with that. This’ll be so much fun!”

“REMEMBER, I WANT TO BE ASSERTIVE, NOT MEAN!”

“I can’t hear you, Papyrus, your connection is breaking up!”

“NO IT ISN’T! FLOWEY!”

Flowey messed around with him for a few more minutes, before finally deciding to give Papyrus a break.

“Okay, okay, I guess we’ve talked enough for today. Guess we’ve both got some things to think about, huh?”

“I GUESS SO. STILL... I’M PROUD OF YOU, FLOWEY. YOU’VE MADE A LOT OF PROGRESS, AND I JUST KNOW THAT YOU’LL KEEP GETTING BETTER!”

“Y’know... I’m actually kinda proud of you too, in a way. You finally stood up for yourself, and you haven’t backpedalled on that. So... good job.”

Though Flowey spoke honestly, he didn’t speak with much enthusiasm. Still, the fact that Flowey was sincerely praising him without any ulterior motive... it showed that he was committed to trying to be better.

Plus, he wasn’t going to deny that it felt good to have someone appreciate his _own_ progress.

“Alright, enough with the sap. So, uh... where’s the off button?”

“OH, RIGHT! IT’S THE BIG, RED BUTTON UNDER THE VOLUME DIAL.”

“...The one with ‘OFF’ written on it in big, block capitals. Right. See you soon, Papyrus.”

“GOODBYE FOR NOW, FLOWEY!”

As Papyrus logged off, he was brimming with a mixture of positive emotions. He was proud of Flowey for his efforts, he was relieved that the system actually worked, he was delighted to know that Flowey was putting so much thought into how he would proceed...

Getting Flowey out of the Underground was still a long way away, there was no doubt about that. Still, Papyrus couldn’t help but wonder if he should bring the topic up again soon; once Flowey was feeling more comfortable with his identity, it might be worth discussing again.

Still, that was for another time. What mattered _now_ was that Flowey was, relatively speaking, okay. He still had plenty of work to do, and the path ahead of him was definitely going to be an arduous one. But Papyrus was confident; he knew that Flowey had it in him to go the whole way.

And he was going to be by his side for the whole journey, no matter what.

* * *

As odd as it was to think, it was rare for Papyrus to have a day by himself, as of late. When he was in the Underground, that was the norm; the only people he really had were sans, Flowey and Undyne. Undyne was often busy with Royal Guard duties, sans had a habit of disappearing or just not being very available, and Flowey only ever showed up on his own schedule.

As such, Papyrus got used to spending time by himself.

Now, with so many friends and family members, it was rare that Papyrus _didn’t_ have someone to spend the day with. Yet, between work, plans and other obligations, Papyrus didn’t have anyone to hang out with.

The entire situation felt so different; back in the Underground, he was always working towards something; new ways to get people to like him, new ideas for joining the Royal Guard, ways that he could help the people that he cared about... there was always something that he _needed_ to do.

Now, however, things were different. He had plenty of friends, he was a member of the Royal Guard, all of his loved ones were either relatively stable or had solid support networks... he could just take some time to relax.

He didn’t really _do_ relaxing.

It felt bizarre not to have _anything_ that he really needed to work towards. Even if he was to work on some puzzles or cooking, it would be purely because he found them to be fun or interesting hobbies; he wouldn’t be trying to impress anyone, nor would there really be any greater goal to work towards.

If he was honest... he wasn’t even sure if he liked the feeling.

That wasn’t to say he was ungrateful, not by any means; he was truly appreciative of everything that he had. He loved to spend time with his friends, he was proud to be a member of the Royal Guard, he was glad that he had achieved his dreams, but... there was an odd appeal about the unattainable.

He had been chasing his dreams for so long that it just didn’t feel right not to be chasing anything any more.

As he drummed his fingers on his desk, a brilliant idea dawned on him; why _not_ begin chasing something else?

With that, he grabbed a notebook and pencil and decided that it was time for a good brainstorm.

Now, despite the fact that he was purposefully looking for something difficult to achieve, he did have to keep it within reason, to a degree: for one, it couldn’t conflict with what he already had. No looking for anything that would get in the way of his Royal Guard duties, nor anything that might compromise any of his relationships with his loved ones.

For another, he had to actually _care_ about what he was doing. The idea was to chase something fanciful, but it had to be meaningful, too; he wasn’t just going to come up with some crazy scheme to chase for no reason.

As he thought about it, he also realized that he didn’t want it to be something too easy; he wasn’t going to pick a ridiculously impossible task, like fighting the sun (There are some mistakes you can only make so many times), but he wanted it to be something that he could commit to. Something that he could spend time working towards, and something that he would be proud to achieve.

With that, he drew a blank. He tapped his pencil against his chin as he thought, but nothing was coming to mind. He considered texting some of his friends to ask for ideas, but quickly realized that that would defeat the purpose; it needed to be something that _he_ came up with.

He decided that he’d take a break, hoping that inspiration would strike. He headed downstairs to fix himself up a light lunch. Of course, while he was putting it together, he was brought back to his earlier conundrum of having nothing to do.

Defeated, he took his lunch over to the living room and decided to watch some television. He flicked over to the MTT Network, hoping to find something interesting to watch to get his mind in gear. He settled on ‘ _You’re Not Smarter Than Mettaton_ ’; quiz shows usually got him thinking, if nothing else.

As always, he enjoyed both the questions and the antics of the show; if they got a question wrong, a contestant would have to engage in some dangerous tasks of questionable legality. As Papyrus watched someone running through a gauntlet of hot coals with shoes that would fall apart after thirty seconds, an idea struck him:

The show probably wasn’t going to last very long on the surface.

After that, however, another thought struck him:

Maybe he had a place in show business?

He thought about it, and it made sense; he could perform ridiculous feats quite well, he had a sharp mind that could adapt to most puzzles and trickery... not to mention, he _did_ have quite a magnificent presence.

Plus, he felt right at home when he explored Mettaton’s sets in the Underground. The more he thought about it, the more sense it made to him. With new inspiration, he returned his focus to the television.

“OH DEAR, IT SEEMS THAT OUR WONDERFUL CONTESTANT HAS GOTTEN THEIR FIFTH ANSWER WRONG. YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS, FOLKS!”

A chorus came from the audience, shouting that the contestant was ‘OUT OF HERE!’ before Mettaton led them to the middle of the stage.

“WELL, BEAUTIES AND GENTLEBEAUTIES! YOU ALL KNOW THE RULES! YOU’VE BEEN A GREAT CONTESTANT, BUT, UNFORTUNATELY... NOT GREAT ENOUGH. PROPS TO YOU FOR TRYING, DARLING!”

The contestant was launched out of the arena to who knows where.

“THAT’S ALL FOR TONIGHT, FOLKS! AND REMEMBER...”

The audience shouted with him as the show came to a close:

“NO ONE’S SMARTER THAN METTATON!”

Papyrus turned the show off. Many contestants had commented on their time on the show, explaining that they had still received generous consolation prizes, and that Mettaton was nothing but friendly behind the scenes.

Still... even if it was all just for show, there was a certain brashness involved with showbusiness that Papyrus wasn’t sure that he could live up to. Not to mention, despite what he had heard and read... all it really took was a look at Mettaton’s relationships with Alphys or Napstablook to make him think that going into television could definitely cause problems for his relationships with others.

Papyrus went back upstairs, no closer to figuring out what he wanted to do than he had been before he left. He looked around his room, hoping for some inspiration.

He looked at his bed. He considered becoming a racecar driver for less than a second, before realizing the possible damage that could come to his car. The thought alone had him rule out anything of the sort.

He looked at his figurine collection... he could go into making figurines? Nothing really excited him about the prospect; he was more interested in having them than making them. There was no inspiration to be had in that idea, so he scrapped it.

He looked over to his flag. He could... become a pirate? Even outside of the ethical issues that arose with the idea, no self-respecting Royal Guard would risk getting scurvy. Besides, a ship was a small space, and he wasn’t sure how walking the plank would work, let alone feeding or grooming it. No, being a pirate was much too complicated.

Finally, he settled on his bookshelf.

He had an assortment of different titles; from comic anthologies to Fluffy Bunny stories to explanations of puzzle theory. As well as that, he had all of sans’ science books (As sans didn’t quite have space for them), as well as the books that he had been lent by Asgore and Alphys. They were all so different, with different aims, ideas and styles, each one being something unique.

He felt a burst of enthusiasm; who _wouldn’t_ be excited to read a book by the Great Papyrus?

With that, he sat back down and began to think about what type of book he’d write:

He could write a novel; he had drawn great inspiration from series like Fluffy Bunny. He could, perhaps, inspire people in the same way that he had been inspired?

...Of course, there were certain aspects of novel writing that he wasn’t quite sure that he possessed; for one, the ability to understand a general audience. If Alphys and Undyne had taught him anything, it was that his interests seemed to be a little outside of the norm. Perhaps he could come back to the idea of a novel if he gained some more writing experience, first.

He could write a book of puzzles; he was a master of puzzles, the elite of the elite! He knew puzzle theory inside out, and had even developed his own concepts and ideas that any up-and-coming puzzler would benefit from!

...Then again, a lot of his puzzle concepts were not very safe by surface standards. He could put a warning at the beginning of the book, but he didn’t want to risk anyone hurting themselves by following his instructions. No, a puzzle book was too risky.

None of it seemed quite right to him. He had plenty of wisdom to impart, but he wasn’t sure how to go about it. He looked down at the notebook once more, looking at the hastily scribbled ideas that he had written down so far.

It was then that he realized that he was overcomplicating things; he didn’t need an intricate novel to inspire people. He didn’t need to write a book of puzzles to explain the important aspects of puzzle development that he had learned.

Papyrus had been through a lot. Even between his time leaving the Underground and now; since moving to the surface, he wasn’t quite the same skeleton that he was before. Every day, he was learning something new that changed his outlook on life. His relationships, both new and old, had developed in ways that he never could have expected; from learning where and where not to involve himself, to learning to be assertive, to having fostered several new relationships with people that he would never have expected... Not to mention, he had also experienced hardships: he'd had quite a difficult time understanding others, carefully toeing the line between being himself and learning what was socially acceptable. Even now, he had difficulty being sure that he was doing the right thing; whenever he could, he made sure to do what he could to help anyone that needed it, but he had also learned that, in some cases, it was better for him not to interfere.

He wouldn’t change his experiences in life for anything. Still... he wouldn’t deny that, had there been a manual that he could have read to guide him, or even just to offer a few helpful suggestions, during the more confusing periods of his life, he would have leapt at the chance to read it.

It was then that he knew what he wanted to do; his new dream would be to write a manual, a guidebook for people like himself, helping them to understand the situations that they might find themselves confused in. Obviously, it wouldn’t have all of the answers; he’d just offer his own perspective. He could bring up general concepts, such as dating, conflict with friends or helping someone during a difficult time that you don't understand. He didn't need it to become a bestseller or anything; he'd be happy as long as one person read it; a person that didn’t have a sans, an Undyne, a Flowey or anyone else to nudge them in the right direction.

Determined to make his new dream into a reality, he got to work. He figured that the best place to start would be the book's title; something that was eye-catching, something that explained what he was hoping to achieve, something that was _his_...

He opened the notebook to a new page and began to write:

_“YOU CAN’T MAKE AN EMOTIONALLY-DEVELOPED PAPYRUS OMELETTE WITHOUT BREAKING A FEW LIMIT-EGGS: DRAFT 1...”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's a wrap! With that, the story has come to a close.
> 
> When I began this, the only scenario I had planned was for Papyrus and Undyne's friendship to fall apart, before being rebuilt through healthy communication. I figured that, I'd have about 15 or 16 chapters at max on my hands. Here we are now, 33 chapters and over 100,000 words later. It's certainly become far bigger than I expected it to be!
> 
> Things have certainly changed throughout; I began with daily updates, before they slowed down. This chapter in particular took quite a while to get out; between the length of it (over 17,000 words!), work having been a nightmare and the loss of a family pet, things have been difficult. There were points where I considered cutting some ideas or rushing it because of how long it was taking; ultimately, however, I decided that it would be best to just do what I could to deliver a worthy final chapter to everyone that's been following the story.
> 
> On that note, I want to offer a sincere thank you to everyone reading; to those of you that have been following from the start, to those of you that joined while the story was in-progress, to anyone reading now that it's finished. The support I got for this fic was truly incredible; frequent comments, people engaging with the ideas that I was putting forward, people enjoying what I had written... I wasn't sure what to expect when I began, but any expectations I had were far surpassed.  
> The comments and kudos really inspired me to turn this from a simple idea (I wanted to delve into Papyrus and Undyne's relationship because there aren't too many fics under the Papyrus & Undyne tag) into a wide exploration of certain aspects of Undertale and the characters and relationships within.  
> So many of you left amazing comments, offering different perspectives, discussing ideas and even expressing an enjoyment for what I was writing. It really did motivate me to push this into the best story that it could be, and I really do just want to extend a sincere thank you to every single one of you; everyone who took the time to comment, everyone who left a kudos, and everyone that took the time to read through the entire fic. You're all amazing!
> 
> As for notes on the story itself... I don't have too much room here, so I'll make a few brief points. If anyone has anything they'd like me to clarify on, I'd be more than happy to!  
> To start off with, there's characterization. I feel like it's worth mentioning that, due to the Papyrus-centric focus, some characters didn't really get a lot of time to shine, or may not have been presented in the best of ways. That was what led to the Undyne chapters; I felt that the story was simply dogpiling on her, without giving a fair understanding of her perspective. Flowey, though not getting his own chapters, still got plenty of time to breathe and explain himself. It wasn't perfect, but I hope that he came across as three-dimensionally as I view him to be. Other characters include Alphys (Since I opted not to have 'said X' in the story, I had to rely a lot on stuttering to make it clear that she was speaking in some cases, far more than actually befits the character), Mettaton (I SWEAR I DON'T HATE HIM. Seriously, the only real chances I had to bring him up were in a negative context, but I love him really) and Asgore (I feel that so much of his feelings are internalized; it's quite difficult to express that without having Papyrus just admit that he doesn't really follow).  
> Then there's the Frisk situation; I really wanted to avoid giving an answer on the subject, and I still kinda didn't in the end. In all honesty, it feels pretty uncomfortable to have them forgive the monsters, regardless of their intentions or desire to be better. I considered writing a separate fic detailing it, but... a happy ending didn't really look feasible, and it was too dark a concept. Even here, it doesn't turn out as happily as one might hope for.  
> Last point, just to clarify, it's not some weird recursion thing where Papyrus wrote the fic. His book is entirely different outside of, obviously, discussing his experiences here.
> 
> To be honest, I'm not sure where to go from here; I've got a few ideas for various universes, all of which could be expanded into fics of their own. I have some Undertale themed ideas, but I don't know if I should move on to them next or to branch out a bit first. Either way, I'm going to take some time to think it over, but I'll hopefully be able to get something out soon!  
> On that note, I'm also willing to consider requests! I can't make any guarantees that I'll fulfil them, but I'd be willing to give any idea a look!
> 
> That's all from me for now, but thank you again for reading! Hopefully I'll have something new out for you soon!
> 
> PS: I may have complained about fonts a lot, but italics are worse.  
> PPS: There are several references in this chapter. Can ya find 'em all?


End file.
